Lot number 16 - Auction 165
HEILIGER JOHANNES DER TÄUFER

SAINT JOHN THE BAPTIST Bavaria or Austria, mid-18th century Linden wood, sculpted, polychromed and gilded, flattened and hollowed out on the back, polychromy partially retouched. H. 97, W. 42, D. 20 cm, 119 cm with staff. Presumably by Christian Jorhan the Elder (1727-1804) or Philipp Jakob Straub (1706-1774). A high-quality depiction of Saint John the Baptist. The forerunner of Christ is shown with his characteristic staff and in a dynamic pose, head bowed, with the Lamb at his feet. The finely modeled physicality and the clear conception of the figure point to 18th-century South German and Austrian sculpture. Stylistically, the figure is closely associated with the circle of the important Bavarian sculptor Christian Jorhan the Elder or Philipp Jakob Straub, who hailed from Wiesensteig and worked in Graz; both are among the defining masters of the South German-Austrian Rococo. The high-quality carving, the rich polychromy, and the expressive design lend the figure an impressive presence. Condition: worn, damaged, affected by woodworm, polychromy partially renewed. Literature: Cf. St. John at the baptismal font of the parish church of St. Nicholas in Altfraunhofen. Expert opinion: Correspondence regarding the art-historical classification between Dr. Schönberger and Dr. Volk, Bavarian National Museum, Munich, 2002. Provenance: Kunsthandel Heidenreich, Hanover; acquired at Neumeister, Munich, Auction 261, 1991.