Eastern France or Burgundy, 16th century Saint... Lot 23

Eastern France or Burgundy, 16th century Saint Sebastian Polychromed limestone sculpture in the round H. 68 cm AL-EJ Missing arrows, added polychromy Saint Sebastian is first mentioned by Saint Ambrose, then by Jacques de Voragine in the Golden Legend. A Roman centurion and Christian living in Millan in the 3rd century, against a backdrop of religious persecution, the saint was punished by Emperor Diocletian, tied to a tree and pierced with arrows. This highly graphic martyrdom evolved into a codified iconography. At first, the saint's body was depicted as riddled with arrows and wounded. Then, from the 16th century onwards, the Renaissance impulse accentuated the sanctification of a young body, victorious over pain, as is the case in our work. Only two piercings are visible at the neck and rib, but the saint's appeased face and glorified body are part of this figuration of triumph over death, enabling our work to be dated. The treatment of the linen draped around the saint's loins and the figure's appeased appearance place our work in the Burgundian production of the 16th century.