Monumental Christ

Monumental Christ
Around 1510
Michael Erhart?
Constance? 1440/45 – after 1522 Ulm
Carved lime wood &
Remains of polychromy
Height 150 cm

This monumental sculpture of the crucified Christ, carved from lime wood around 1510, shows the skill and emotional depth characteristic of the craftsmanship of this period and probably originated in the artistic center of Ulm. It is possible that this depiction originated from the workshop of the important carver Michel Erhart.

Michel Erhart was an important carver of the late Gothic style of the Ulm School. Probably trained in the Netherlands and on the Upper Rhine, he was first listed in the Ulm tax lists in 1469 and worked his way up to become the leading sculptor there until his death after 1522. He appears to have had a close relationship with the equally important sculptor Niklaus Weckmann, as the latter is documented as the guardian of one of Erhart’s children in 1506. The works of both are also stylistically very similar due to their affiliation with the Ulm school.

Christ is depicted here in elongated form, with a slender and sinewy body that captures the suffering and sacrifice of the crucifixion. The figure’s long legs are brought together in the traditional three-nail type, which further emphasizes the verticality and elongation of Christ’s form. The proportions are very similar to those of Erhart’s Blaubeur crucifix and those of Weckmann’s Man of Sorrows in the sprinkling of the Blaubeur high altar from 1493. His long, luxuriant hair falls down in curly strands and frames his sorrowful face, which bears a haunting expression of melancholy, with the half-closed eyes creating a feeling of devoted devotion. The finely carved curls are a typical feature of both Weckmann, comparable to the choir arch crucifix in the Basilica of St. Martin in Landshut from 1495, and Erhart, for example in the figure of the youth in the highly significant Vanitas group in the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna (KHM, Kunstkammer, inv. no. 1).

The drapery of the perizonium lies close to the body in complex, flowing paths that are carefully carved. This suggests both the movement and the weight of the fabric and is an indication of the stylistic tendencies of the period. This attention to detail places the sculpture in the late Gothic style. Although the sculpture has no polychromy, the carving itself is very detailed and lifelike. Central features of the Ulm School include the tightly curled hair, elegant body shapes, a softly modeled facial physiognomy and detailed drapery. This depiction of Christ thus illustrates the artistic significance of this style, capturing a moment of poignant grace and piety.

Literature:

Barbara Maier-Lörcher, Masterpieces of Ulm Art, Ostfildern 2004.

Brigitte Reinhardt (ed.), Michel Erhart & Jörg Syrlin the Elder: Late Gothic in Ulm, Ulm 2002.

Barbara Schäuffelen and Joachim Feist, Ulm: Portrait of a Cityscape, Stuttgart 1987.