On display
Image of Gallery in South Kensington

The Holy Family with St Anne, Joachim, Cleophas, and Salomas

Relief
ca. 1515-1520 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

This is a relief made in Tyrol in about 1520. The relief is carved in Stone pine, a soft alpine wood which was favoured in the Tyrol, and gilded and painted. This relief representing the Holy Family shows the Virgin with the Child Christ, St Joseph and the Virgin's mother, St. Anne, surrounded by her three husbands, Joachim, Salomas and Cleophas. This relief, together with Mus. no. 1307-1872, probably formed part of a wing of a large altarpiece, such as the Brixen Altarpiece. THey may have been carved by a sculptor who had been trained in a workshop in Bavaria, but later settled in Tyrol.

Object details

Categories
Object type
TitleThe Holy Family with St Anne, Joachim, Cleophas, and Salomas (generic title)
Materials and techniques
carved in high relief, painted and partly gilt.
Brief description
Relief, The Holy Family with Saints, carved, painted and gilded pine, Tyrol, ca. 1515-1520
Physical description
Relief of the Holy Family with Saints. Depicting the Christ Child, the Virgin Mary, St Joseph, St Anne, and her three husbands, Joachim, Cleophas, and Salomas. The Virgin sits
Dimensions
  • Height: 57cm
  • Width: 61.5cm
  • Depth: 14cm
Gallery label
(26/11/2010)
The Holy Kindred
About 1510–20
This group represents the family of Christ. In the centre
sits the Virgin, holding Christ, with her mother St Anne.
Surrounding them are St Joseph and St Anne’s three
husbands, Joachim, Cleophas and Salomas. With the
relief below, it probably formed part of the wing of a
large altarpiece, attached to a painted background.
Austria, Tyrol
Painted and gilded pine
Museum no. 1306-1872
Object history
Said to have come from a church in the Tyrol. Bought from Christie's , London, 7 December 1872, lot 147 for £12.

Historical significance: Although the type of wood (pine) was used predominantly in the Tyrol, and their provenance from this area seems certain, the stylistic features of the relief are derived from Lower Bavarian sculptures.
Historical context
This relief probably formed part of a wing of an altarpiece.
Subjects depicted
Summary
This is a relief made in Tyrol in about 1520. The relief is carved in Stone pine, a soft alpine wood which was favoured in the Tyrol, and gilded and painted. This relief representing the Holy Family shows the Virgin with the Child Christ, St Joseph and the Virgin's mother, St. Anne, surrounded by her three husbands, Joachim, Salomas and Cleophas. This relief, together with Mus. no. 1307-1872, probably formed part of a wing of a large altarpiece, such as the Brixen Altarpiece. THey may have been carved by a sculptor who had been trained in a workshop in Bavaria, but later settled in Tyrol.
Associated object
1307-1872 (Ensemble)
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, Norbert. German Sculpture 1430-1540: A Catalogue of the Collection in the Victoria and Albert Museum. London, 2002. cat. no. 69, pp. 148-149
  • Jahrbuch der Staatlichen Kunstsammlungen in Baden-Württemberg. 29, 1992, pp. 219-220
Collection
Accession number
1306-1872

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Record createdSeptember 12, 2008
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