click on any object shown in the image below
German, St John the Evangelist, c. 1500, Wood, 140 cm x 44 cm x 25 cm
St John was the only one of the Apostles to be present at Jesus’s trial before Caiaphas, and to stand with Mary at the foot of the cross. The sculpture, therefore, would originally have formed part of a large crucifixion group. To judge by the scale of St John, the composition would have been almost life size.
The wood surface would have been originally painted over a gypsum base, although very little polychrome remains. The quality of the drapery carving is very fine.
