Statuette, carved boxwood partly painted, of St. Sebastian, Spain (Valencia), ca.1700-20

Carved boxwood statuette of St. Sebastian. The saint stands tied to a tree. His right arm is tied to the right above his shoulder. His left hand is tied away from the body at the hip. Weight is shifted to the right leg. The left leg is bound behind him. The head is upturned to the right, with eyes cast upward. A white loincloth is knotted at the hip. The figure and tree stand on a blue base, probably not of boxwood.

The holes in the torso and legs were probably once fitted with arrows. The paint is badly chipped in several places.

Purchased for £4 by John Charles Robinson in 1863 from Don José Calcerrada (Madrid).

Historical significance: This figure is unusual in its moderate use of polychromy. The skin colour appears to be a wash surface on the wood, rather than painted, while the lack of paint on the hair means that the fine carving is clearly visible.

This statuette in boxwood, representing Saint Sebastian tied to a tree, is made in the province of Valencia in Spain, in ca. 1700-1720.

This figure is unusual in its moderate use of polychromy. The skin colour appears to be a wash surface on the wood, rather than painted, while the lack of paint on the hair means that the fine carving is clearly visible.

90-1864