Lot 1621 Dα

Meister Arnt

A carved oak figure of a female saint, probably Saint Catherine, by Master Arnt.

Carved in the round, the reverse only partially worked. With minimal remains of former polychromy.. This figure of a female saint standing in a gently swaying pose, designed for a frontal viewpoint, is thought to depict Saint Catherine although the identifying attribute at her feet is now lost. In its overall design, but especially in the facial features, the piece is recognisable as a particularly finely carved example of the work of Master Arnt, a sculptor who ran two workshops in Kalkar in the Lower Rhine Region and Zwolle in the Netherlands from 1460 to 1491. The exhibition “Arnt the Sculptor of Images. Master of Animated Sculptures” held in 2020 in the Museum Schnütgen in Cologne presented the first large overview of the works of Master Arnt and his workshops. The exhibition highlighted the importance of his œuvre for the art of carving during his era, clearly showing that the works of “Arnt Beeldesnider” were among the finest produced in the Lower Rhenish and Dutch regions of the former Duchy of Cleves throughout the late 15th century.
The right hand and the tips of the toes lost, losses to the left hand and the lower edge of the robe. The plinth irregularly cut, the attribute at the saint's feet presumably trimmed off during this process. Height 90 cm.