THIENEN, Renier van

Flemish sculptor, part of a family of sculptors. His first recorded commission was for a bronzeGLOSSARYAn alloy of copper (usually about 90 per cent) and tin, often also containing small amounts of other metals such as lead or zinc. Since antiquity it has been the metal most commonly used in cast sculpture because of its strength, durability, and the fact that it is easily workable - both hot and cold - by a variety of processes. It is easier to cast than copper because it has a lower melting-point, and its great tensile strength makes possible the protrusion of unsupported parts - an advantage over marble sculpture. The colour of bronze is affected by the proportion of tin or other metals present, varying from silverish to a rich, coppery red, and its surface beauty can be enhanced when it acquires a patina. lecternGLOSSARYA reading stand or desk, especially one at which the Bible is read. in the form of a pelican for the church of St James, Coudenbourg, in Brussels in 1465. The lost work probably resembled the bronze lectern sometimes attributed to van Thienen in the church of St Germain, Tirlemont. In 1468 van Thienen provided copper buttons for the coach of the Duchess of Burgundy, and three years later he delivered six bronze candlesticks (destroyed) for the Chambre de Comptes of Brussels. He was a respected Brussels citizen and held several civic offices in 1477-91.

In 1479-83 van Thienen was working on a copper balustradeGLOSSARYA rail supported by a row of small posts or open-work panels., the first of several works (all now lost) for the church of St Leonard, Zoutleeuw. In 1481-82 he was commissioned to make bronze lighting equipment for the chapelGLOSSARYa small separate place for worship, either part of a large church or a separate building. of St Leonard's which was to resemble that in Ste Gudule, Brussels, for which he was presumably also responsible. A small statue of St Leonard from one of the candlesticks survives in a private collection.