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Tobias burning the fish's liver and heart, while Raphael drives the wicked spirit away
Christoph Murer, born 1558 - died 1614 - Enlarge image
Tobias burning the fish's liver and heart, while Raphael drives the wicked spirit away
- Object:
Panel
- Place of origin:
Switzerland (designed)
ulm, Germany (possibly, made) - Date:
ca. 1600 (made)
- Artist/Maker:
Christoph Murer, born 1558 - died 1614 (designer)
- Materials and Techniques:
Stained glass
- Credit Line:
Purchased with funds from the Murray Bequest
- Museum number:
C.566-1921
- Gallery location:
In Storage
This panel shows a scene from the Old Testament story of Tobias and the Angel. Here Tobias is burning the liver and heart of a fish to drive away the demon that had killed all seven previous husbands of his future wife Sarah. The Archangel Raphael uses his sword to drive the demon away.
It illustrates one of the new techniques for decorating glass that were introduced in the mid 16th century. Glassmakers used paints known as 'enamels' to paint directly onto the glass, similar to painting onto a canvas. The colours were produced by adding metallic oxides to a ground glass (frit) mixture. The resulting wide colour range included the delicate pinks, yellows, greens, reds and purples shown here.
Christoph Murer (1558-1614) was a distinguished Swiss glass painter. He produced numerous designs for stained glass windows, including a series based on Tobias and the Angel that includes this panel.
