SAINT FLORIAN Swabian, late 15th century Lime... Lot 17

SAINT FLORIAN Swabian, late 15th century Lime tree, polychrome H. 98 cm, W. 29 cm, D. 24 cm PROVENANCE Former collection of Professor Leinhaas, sale in Munich, Galerie Helbing, 26 May 1908, lot 8, reproduced pl. VIII-8 Former collection of Officer von Berger, sale in Berlin, at Jacob Hecht's, 17-18 April 1929, lot 330, reproduced pl. 21 Former private collection, Visp (Switzerland) Former collection of Mr. and Mrs. Staehelin-Paravicini, sale in Basel, at their home, by Mr. Kundig, March 23-24-25, 1939, lot 77, reproduced on pl. 21 Our half-round linden carving has preserved its beautiful original polychromy Marked by the points of the clamp at the ends, hollowed out at the back, it bears the characteristic traces of the work of the Swabian workshops. Saint Florian can be recognised by his armour, his spear and the burning city at his feet. In 1908 he was still holding his water bucket (Fig. 1). The legend of St. Florian begins when he heard about 40 Christians who were to be martyred in Lorch, in southern Germany. This Roman officer, originally from Austria, went there incessantly in solidarity. He defied the local governor, proclaiming his faith and refusing to sacrifice to idols. He was put to death by drowning on May 4, 304. His cult developed especially in Austria and Bavaria where he was invoked against the dangers of water and fire. However, this image of a protector against fire was not popularized until later, in the middle of the 15th century and in southern Germany. The engraver Casper, who was active in Regensburg and Ulm, depicted him in a breastplate with a bucket of water in his hand to extinguish fire in a city (Fig. 2). The formal relationship of his armour to that of our sculpture is noteworthy. The model of the breastplate decorated with a brace motif is quite typical of the region. Our sculptor embellished it with a pyramidal breastplate stop, a support for the spear he holds in his left hand, with a rare sense of realistic detail. He went so far as to draw a network of fan-shaped lines on the tassette that protects the upper thigh.