Artworks Catalogue

Location

Austria, Styria, Graz

Calvary (Kalvarienberg)

Artwork

The sculptural group of the Three Carriers of the Anointing Oil in a chapel at the Calvary of St Radegund bei Graz

Type

Sculptural group

Critical History

The Calvary of St Radegund was laid out in terrace-form and shows station-chapels of different size. Some of them contain stone sculptures made by the workshop of Philipp Jakob Straub, others show wooden works of the same time.1 Some of the sculptural decoration was made after 1834 by artist Matthias Rath.2

The sculptural group depicting the Three Carriers of the Anointing Oil (Mary Magdalene, Mary, mother of Jacob and Salome) is presented in the last chapel of the round tour, directly next to the Entombment of Christ. They stand facing each other with an ointment vessel in one hand. The artful drapery of their clothing refers to Straub as executing artist as well as the mannered posture of especially the little finger. The remarkable bowl-shaped fold of Mary’s cloak that is formed by a strap, holding it by the hip also indicates Straub’s style.

Construction / Execution

The sculptures are made of carved sandstone and they are worked in three dimensions.

Components

Sculpture

Author: Philipp Jakob Straub (Wiesensteig 1706 – Graz 1774)

Completed: 1750 – 1775

Technique(s): stone carving

Material(s): sandstone

Polychromy

Completed: 1750 – 1775

Comment

The colouring is in a bad condition. A surface-cleaning would be necessary.

Images

1. The sculptural group of Mary Magdalene, Mary and Salome in a chapel of the Calvary in St Radegund (photo by Christina Pichler, 2018)
2. Mary Magdalene, detail, chapel, Calvary St Radegund (photo by Christina Pichler, 2018)
3. Mary (mother of Jacob), detail, chapel, Calvary St Radegund (photo by Christina Pichler, 2018)
4. Salome, detail, chapel, Calvary St Radegund (photo by Christina Pichler, 2018)