Statue, painted terracotta, St. Peter, Bavaria (Landshut), ca. 1480

Statuette of St Peter. The bearded figure wear a red cape over a blue tunic. He holds a book in his left hand. Keys once held in the right hand are now missing.

Bought from Colli Brothers, Innsbruck, along with A.36-1910 and A.38-1910, [see Williamson 1988, pp. 178-81, no. 52], and W.52 to 54-1910 for a total of £473 in 1910.

Historical significance: Both figures probably formed part of a cycle of Apostles positioned high up on pilasters or piers, similar to the ensemble of terracotta figures preserved in the choir and aisles of the St Martin's church in Landshut (see below).
When first acquired in 1910 these two figures were described as South German, early sixteenth century. Müller (1930, p. 199) classified the figures as Upper Austrian. Ress (1955, p. 76) first associated them with the cycle of the terracotta figures in Landshut in Bavaria and suggested an origin in the same workshop, active in the second half of the fifteenth century. Baxandall agreed with his observations (1974, p. 24).
Although the figures of Sts Peter and Paul (h. about 170cm) from the Landshut cycle are larger than A.37 and A.38-1910, they are close in style. The workshop seems to have produced figures in various sizes, but using a similar stylistic formula. A fragment of a head of St Peter (h. 12cm) from a group of the Agony in the Garden was recently acquired by the Bayerisches Nationalmuseum in Munich (Kahsnitz 1993, p. 22, ill. on p. 23; idem. 1994, p. 232). In its close similarity to the London Apostles, it does not necessarly represent - as suggested by Kahsnitz - a later stage in the stylistic development of the workshop, but is more probably a product in a smaller format in an analogous style.
Two other figures, a St Mary Magdalene (h. 115cm) and a St Martha (h. 107cm) in the Historisches Museum in Vienna, said to have come from the cathedral of St Stephen, have similarly modelled faces to those of A.37 and A.38-1910. (Tietz 1931, fig. 667, 668; Exh. Prague 1991/92, nos. 24, 25). Ress (1955, p. 81) suggested they might come from the same cycle, although this could only be established by technical investigation of the figures, or if documentary evidence comes to light.
Terracotta sculpture flourished in Bavaria in the fifteenth century, particularly in the Ducal cities of Straubing and Landshut. During the second quarter of the fifteenth century Straubing appears to have been dominant (Schädler, 1969, pp. 450-458), while in the second half of the century the production in Landshut reached its peak. The above-mentioned terracotta figures in Landshut, the four figures in Vienna and in London, the head of St Peter in Munich, another figure of the Virgin, formerly in the Silten collection in Berlin (present location unknown; Wilm 1929, p. 69, fig. 119), and a Standing Virgin and Child in the Skulpturengalerie in Berlin (Demmler 1930, p. 118, no. 3117, h. 113.5cm) all seem to have come from the same workshop, which was probably actively producing devotional terracotta figures for a period of about twenty years. Although the exact numbers of such single figures or cycles produced during the period is unknown, it is probable that only a small percentage has survived.

This painted terracotta (baked clay) figure represents St Peter. It probably formed part of a cycle of Apostles (Jesus Christ's first followers) positioned high up on pilasters or piers. It may have been similar to an ensemble of terracotta figures preserved in the choir and aisles of St Martin's Church in Landshut, Bavaria, in southern Germany.

Terracotta sculpture flourished in Bavaria in the period 1400-1500, particularly in the Ducal cities of Straubing and Landshut. This terracotta figure was probably produced in a busy Landshut workshop. It seems likely that many were made, but only a few are known today.

A.37:1, 2-1910