IN PARTS I AND II of this study, the Great Cross at the Chartreuse de Champmol, Dijon, known today as the ‘Well of Moses’, was reconstructed. A wealth of evidence demonstrated that on the terrace the Magdalene knelt alone, embracing the base of the cross; moreover, the face of the cross was not set over David, as previously supposed, but at the point of the hexagon between David and Jeremiah, providing a visually more complex and satisfying view (Figs.1 and 2). This reconstruction allows a complete reconsideration of the meaning, audience and purpose of this monument. The Magdalene becomes a key figure, and the orientation of the cross indicates a new grouping and interpretation of the angels and prophets. Most dramatically, the crucial role of Jeremiah on this monument is now apparent, and it has wide-ranging implications for the artistic programme at Champmol and the art of this period in general.

SURVEYS OF MODERNIST British sculpture regularly begin with a description of the architectural carvings made by Jacob Epstein for the new British Medical Association building on the Strand in London during 1907 and 1908 (Fig.26). Despite this apparent consensus among art histor­ians, it is still far from clear exactly why the carvings should herald such a radical change in sculptural aesthetics and techniques, and what Epstein’s intentions were in creating them. Fortunately, a century after the sculptor began work on the project, new evidence has emerged that goes a long way towards clarifying both questions. The present article not only confirms the position of the BMA carvings at the roots of British Modernism, but also exposes their debt to a specific artistic tradition from outside Europe. Intercultural aesthetic exchange is persistently ignored in discussions of early Modernism, in particular, but Epstein’s trans-national leanings confirm it as an important factor even during the first decade of the twentieth century.

THIS TECHNICAL STUDY helps to explain how Pablo Picasso made one of his earliest Cubist constructions, Still life (1914; Spies 47; Fig.37); what his original intentions were and how he achieved them; and how the work has changed with time. Conservators have published technical studies on Picasso’s paintings, but less attention has been paid to his early sculptures. This article suggests ways in which Picasso controlled his materials to emphasise the basic, almost crude, effect he intended. The artist’s failure or refusal to efface evidence of the way the work came into being gives the impression of hasty or rough workmanship, and at the time Still life was made this was unusual, even shocking, in a serious work of art. Picasso left clues that give insight into his working method. Close inspection and analysis of Still life reveals a level of control in the construction that is not immediately obvious. There are indications of effort and deliberation that support the argument that Picasso intended this work to have an unfinished look. Connections between some components in Still life and those in other constructions from this period are here examined; but other comparisons may illuminate more about the artist’s working methods and the chronology of these early works.