Not currently on display at the V&A

St Christopher

Relief
ca. 1480-1490 (made)
Artist/Maker
Unknown
Place of origin
Tyrol (made)

This is a pinewood relief made in Tyrol in about 1480-90. The relief represents St. Christopher carrying the infant Christ. This relief probably formed part of a wing of an altarpiece and the iconographic type seems common in the Tyrol. A close parallel for the scheme of the drapery of St. Christopher is to be found in the figure of St. Sebastian on the left wing of the altarpiece in Klerant near Brixen, dated 1484, made in the workshop of Hans Klocker in Brixen. The facial features of the saint are closely related to those of the Apostles, also a product of the Klocker workshop. These close analogies suggest this relief was made in Brixen in about 1480-90, perhaps in the Klocker workshop.


Object details

Categories
Reliefs
Christianity
Religion
Object type
Relief
TitleSt Christopher (generic title)
Materials and techniques
Limewood, carved in relief, painted and partly gilt
Limewood
Carving
Painting
Gilding
Brief description
Relief, pinewood painted and gilded, St. Christopher carrying the infant Jesus, perhaps by the Brixen workshop Klocker, Tyrolese, ca. 1480-1490
Physical description
Relief of St. Christopher carrying the infant Jesus.
Dimensions
  • Length: 26.25in
  • Width: 10.75in
Object history
Said to have come from a church in the Tyrol, Bought at Christie's, London, 7 December 1872, lot. 137 for £1 10s.
Subjects depicted
St. Christopher
Jesus Christ
Summary
This is a pinewood relief made in Tyrol in about 1480-90. The relief represents St. Christopher carrying the infant Christ. This relief probably formed part of a wing of an altarpiece and the iconographic type seems common in the Tyrol. A close parallel for the scheme of the drapery of St. Christopher is to be found in the figure of St. Sebastian on the left wing of the altarpiece in Klerant near Brixen, dated 1484, made in the workshop of Hans Klocker in Brixen. The facial features of the saint are closely related to those of the Apostles, also a product of the Klocker workshop. These close analogies suggest this relief was made in Brixen in about 1480-90, perhaps in the Klocker workshop.
Bibliographic references
  • List of Objects in the Art Division, South Kensington, Acquired During the Year 1872, Arranged According to the Dates of Acquisition. London: Printed by George E. Eyre and William Spottiswoode for H.M.S.O., p. 110
  • Jopek, Nobert. German Sculpture 1430-1540: A Catalogue of the Collection in the Victoria and Albert Museum. London, 2002, cat. no. 62, pp. 131-132
Collection
Sculpture Collection
Accession number
1305-1872

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Record createdSeptember 12, 2008
Record URL
https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O166950/st-christopher-relief-unknown/
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