It featured a wolf disguised as a monk, preaching from a pulpit to a congregation of wolves, dogs, a lion, a cat and a wild boar – a scene evidently intended to satirise the cupidity of contemporary clergy, reinforced by the words Audite Verbum Rapacitatis et Estis Memores (‘listen to the word rapacious and profit by it’) – a mocking take on Audite Verbum Dei (‘listen to the word of God’).
A high price to pay for religious satire
The ceramics highlight of a mixed subject sale at Raymond de Nicolaÿ (17.94/14.35% buyer’s premium) at Drouot on June 26 was this elaborately decorated maiolica charger c.1520, from Deruta, 19in (49cm) in diameter, which made a double-estimate €330,000 (£213,000).
