Etymology
Borrowed from German Notname, literally "necessity name" or "contingency name".
Noun
Notname (plural Notnames)
- A standard name invented for an artist or author whose identity is unknown.
1974, Burton B. Fredericksen, Giovanni di Francesco and the Master of Pratovecchio, →ISBN, page 6:The use of the Notname was a frank admission that the lot in question was less prestigious than originally suggested, and the final price paid was lower than what would be expected for a Castagno painting.
2004, Jaarboek van het Koninklijk Museum voor Schone Kunsten Antwerpen:The triptych with The Adoration of the Magi in the Antwerp museum (cat. 68) inspired the Notname of the anonymous master of the works of Group D: Master of the Antwerp Adoration.
2016, Koen Goudriaan, Anna Dlabačová, Ad Tervoort, Piety in Practice and Print, →ISBN:On the basis of this statement scholars have looked for the whereabouts of the producer of this text – who is called by the Notname 'Printer of the Kerstenspiegel' – in Louvain.