Bust Of Saint John The Baptist In Polychrome Wood - Bavaria, 16th Century

This moving carved wooden bust once crowned a full-length figure of Saint John the Baptist represented as a hermit, dressed with the traditional animal skin that he wears in the desert. Its detailed design with its play on materials attests, in the same way as the sensitive face of the saint, to the talent of our sculptor. The careful cutting of his locks with tight curls as well as the features of his placid and detached face designate the chisel of a German artist, possibly active in Bavaria in the 16th century. The significant remains of polychromy which, under the effect of the wear of past centuries, reveal in places the bare wood of the sculpture, redouble the intensity of this touching testimony to the expressive force of Gothic works of the end of the Middle Ages.