SAINT ANTOINUS THE GREAT Swabian, early 16th century... Lot 25

SAINT ANTOINUS THE GREAT Swabian, early 16th century Polychromed and gilded basswood Polychromy restored; right hand missing H. 54.5 cm Provenance Private collection, eastern France This St. Anthony, shown here in the Antonine habit, wearing a hooded cloak, of the friars of the hospitable order placed under his patronage in the 13th century after James of Voragine had contributed to the spread of his cult in the West by including the story of his life in the Golden Legend Anthony was born in Egypt where he lived as a hermit in the 3rd century before gathering a community around him. On his death, his relics were first sent to Constantinople and then transferred in the 11th century to an abbey in the Dauphiné region of France, which became famous under the title of Saint-Antoine-en-Viennois. The hospitaller friars of this abbey were under the direct authority of the Pope. They adopted a meat diet for themselves and the patients they cared for. To this end, they raised pigs. The legend also tells that the saint domesticated an evil boar. At the end of the Middle Ages, the boar was therefore considered to be the main attribute of Saint Anthony Our sculpture, made of lime wood and hollowed out at the back, could have come from an altarpiece. His elongated face, framed by thick hair and a beard, evokes the physiognomy of Swabian statues from the first half of the 16th century. His wavy locks, chiselled in hooks, are found in the very beautiful Saint James in the Landesmuseum in Zurich (fi g. 1). Their faces are crossed by a long, straight nose with a strong ridge. Note also the similar treatment of the drapery of the cloaks, whose pleats are more supple than in the previous period