16th Century Hand-Painted and Carved Wood Russian Orthodox Cross

Pair of 16th Century Italian carved polychromed angelic sculptures.

A pair of 16th Century Spanish altar panels of Cherubs Representing the Omnipresence of God mounted on a Lucite panel with a double frame of hand-carved ...

17th Century Italian wood image of Christ carrying his cross to calvary mounted on a hand-painted black panel and framed with a modern gold gilded hand-finished wood frame.  

19th Century Russian Empire carved wood candle holder / plant stand. It has been modeled after a lion perched on a ball holding a white gold...

Early 16th Century Spanish gold gilded and polychromed carved wood sculpture of John The Baptist.

Introducing a captivating 17th-century Italian carved wood and polychromed, gold-gilded crucifix depicting Jesus on the cross. This remarkable piece...

16th century German hand carved painted wood St. Sebastian.

Choir Mercy. Carved wood. Century XVI. Carved wooden Misericordia that surely belonged to a choir stall (see the upper flat part, which acts as a seat), decorated with a figurative ...

Angel. Carved and polychrome wood. Century XVI. Polychrome wood carving showing an angel, with the face facing the viewer and the body in pr...

Base of a carved wooden candelabrum, polychrome and gilded; cross painted on both sides. Umbria or Tuscany, 16th century 136 x 43,5 x 30 cm (The cross and the base of the candelabrum were later assembled) The base of the candelabrum is intricately carved and adorned with polychrome and gilded finishes. The shafts take on the shape of balusters reminiscent of ancient columns, feature ornate foliage decorations, garlands and winged cherub faces. The feet are crafted in the likeness of lion paws. The base is further embellished with depictions of four saint martyrs, among them Saint Barbara and Saint Catherine of Alexandria. The plasticity of the figures, outlined with strong contour lines, the clear and vibrant colors, are stylistic elements linked to the Umbrian tradition of the sixteenth century.The precisely defined and elegant drawing, along with the clear color palette applied with refined chiaroscuro modulations, became the signature of a style that would leave a lasting mark on the era to come. This is exemplified by a preference for vibrant, multicolored images, accentuated in this case by the use of red and pink in the saint's attire. A notable addition, introduced later, is a polylobed cross painted on both sides. On one side, the Crucifixion is vividly portrayed:The treatment of the corpus itself is in line with High Medieval practice, emphasizing pathos by showing Jesus dead, his arms sagging from the weight of the body. The upper section displaying a pelican pecks at her breast to feed her young with her own blood; a symbol of the sacrifice of Christ on the cross whose body and blood similarly nourishes the celebrant during Mass. The lower part depicts Golgotha. On the reverse side, the Resurrection is artistically presented in a Renaissance iconography, reminiscent of the renowned composition painted by Piero della Francesca, now housed in the Civic Museum of Sansepolcro. In terms of composition, with the frontal depiction of Christ holding the banner, this motif became particularly widespread in central Italy, spanning from Tuscany to Umbria throughout the 16th century.. The double-sided construction suggests that it may also have been carried in liturgical processions. In Umbria from the 14th century, the use of portable crosses painted on both sides had become a widespread practice, aimed at satisfying the monastic clientele that had significantly increased following the establishment of new religious communities. The earliest surviving Tuscan painted crucifix represent Christ as Christus Triumphans, or the “Triumphant Christ” with his head up and eyes open. This form was supplanted in the 13th century with the Christus Patiens, or “Suffering Christ” type who is shown often with his head fallen on his shoulder and his eyes closed, as In our cross. The iconography of the suffering Christ appears to have developed out of a new interest in Christ’s human nature, the development of the feast of Corpus Christi and with increased importance given to the Eucharist. The process of humanizing the figure of Christ reaches its peak with the abandonment of all the previous expressive conventions in favor of more realistic details we can observe in this Crucifix, such as the swollen belly, the arms stretched to the limit of muscle tearing, the body falling heavily forward, the abundant blood on the wounds, and the cross firmly embedded in the rock of Calvary. It's worth noting that Renaissance candelabra...

Set of two 16th century oak panels, one representing a character accompanied by a dog, the other a character in flames, probably saints. These ...

A large carved wooden purbha sculpture Tibet 15th - 16th Century With the triangular blade issuing from the mouth of a makara, the grip with stylized endless knot, the finial with t...