Polychrome Sculptures of St. John and a Reliquary Figure

Two Polychrome Statuettes of Saint John the Baptist and a Holy Reliquary Figure.

Germany, late 14th century.

Height: 31 cm and 32.3 cm (excluding later pedestals).

Finely carved in the round, these two gilt and polychrome limewood statuettes—likely conceived as part of the same sculptural ensemble—represent Saint John the Baptist and a Holy Reliquary Figure.

Saint John the Baptist is depicted in a conventional iconographic pose, raising his right index finger in gesture toward a medallion depicting the Agnus Dei (Lamb of God), held in his veiled left hand and partially enveloped by the drapery of his mantle. The figure stands upon a moulded base.

The companion figure, serving as a holy reliquary, wears a voluminous mantle with a turned-back fold at the front. The face is oval in shape, framed by short hair and a bifid beard, and the reverse of the figure is hollowed to form a cavity for relics. It rests upon a moulded plinth with chamfered corners.

Condition: Minor losses and small restorations; polychromy is old but later.