Paintings of “Adoration of the Holy Trinity by St John de Math and St Felix de Valois” and “St Jude Thaddeus” – forgotten works by Tadeusz Kuntze

Abstract

In 1758, Tadeusz Kuntze made two paintings for the side altars of the newly built Church of the Discalced Friars of the Order of the Most Holy Trinity for the Redemption of the Captives in Cracow. The canvas of St. Jude Thaddeus remains in situ, while the representation of Adoration of the Holy Trinity by St. John de Matha and St. Felix de Valois was removed before 1850 and is currently in the Trinitarian monastery in Cracow-Płaszow. These works, as well as the Trinitarian temple, were created on the initiative of Fr Stanislaus Oborski, the most eminent member of the Polish-Lithuanian Province of the Order, in 1753–1759 holding the title of Minister General, residing in Rome. It seems certain that Fr Oborski, as a connoisseur of art, came into contact with Tadeusz Kuntze in the Eternal City, and then, taking advantage of his presence in Cracow in the years 1756/1757–1759, commissioned him to make the aforementioned canvases. This conclusion is prompted by their stylistic and formal affinity with the artist’s artwork and the information given by Edward Rastawiecki about two paintings by Kuntze, preserved in the former Trinitarian church in the middle of the nineteenth century. Unfortunately, the poor condition of both works does not allow to fully appreciate their original beauty.