Lothringen circa 1320/1330
A Lorraine carved limestone figure of Saint Catherine, circa 1320/1330
Carved in the round, with minimal remains of subsequently added polychromy. A figure of Saint Catherine designed for a frontal and slightly lowered viewpoint. She stands in a gently swaying pose facing slightly to one side with her left foot extended. She holds her attribute, the wheel, in her right hand, and she presumably originally held a martyr's palm in her left. The fine carving of this work is particularly evident in the drapery of the veil, the girded gown, and the cloak draped around the saint's form, as well as the detailed and subtle treatment of the facial features and hair, the flower crown and the wheel. The composition and style of the work allow us to locate it to the Lorraine region in the first half of the 14th century.
The left hand and the tip of the left foot lost. Losses to the crown, wheel, fingers of the right hand and the right and front left of the plinth. Minimal wear. Height 66 cm.
Provenance
Acquired 1961 in Vienna at "Galerie Hofstätter". - Since then Austrian private collection.
Literature
Comparable sculptures from Lorraine from this time in exhib. cat.: Lothringische Skulptur des 14. Jahrhunderts, ed. by Ralph Melcher, Saarbrücken/Petersberg 2006 (Ausstellung des Saarlandmuseums Saarbrücken).