Location
Slovenia, Malečnik
Parish Church of St Peter (Župnijska cerkev sv. Petra)
Artwork
Side Altar of the Virgin Mary in the Parish Church of St Peter in Malečnik
Type
Side altar
Dimensions
Height: 330 cm, width: 196 cm, depth: 80 cm
Critical History
In the Parish Church of St Peter in Malečnik there are six side altars placed in the side chapels, facing the entrance. Sergej Vrišer attributed two of them (the altars of St Francis Xavier and St Anthony of Padua) to Joseph Straub and all the others to Philipp Jakob Straub.1 Sergej Vrišer also wrote that according to the chronicle, the polychromy was done by Dominik Cocconi in 1746.2 He published a transcription of the receipt from 1796 with the payment to a painter named Geringer and to the sculptor Joseph Holzinger for their works on the altars.3
The side altar of the Virgin Mary is placed in the first chapel on the left side of the church. On the left of the sculpture of the Virgin Mary and Child, there is a sculpture of St Anne, and on the right of St Joachim. Both sculptures show characteristics of Philipp Jakob Straub’s personal style: long, thin faces, long noses, big eyes, rich dresses and elegant postures.
Construction / Execution
The side altar is made of wood. The architecture was silvered with a layer of coloured varnish. The painting on canvas is framed by a gilded frame.
Components
- Carpentry
- Carpentry
- Technique(s): sawing, wood carving
- Material(s): softwood
- Sculpture
- Sculpture
- Author: Philipp Jakob Straub (Wiesensteig 1706 – Graz 1774)
- Completed: 1746
- Technique(s): wood carving
- Material(s): limewood
- Polychromy
- Polychromy
- Author: Dominicus Cagoni
- Completed: 1746 –
- Technique(s): oil, water gilding
- Material(s): bole, calcium carbonate, gold leaf, natural resin, silver leaf, size
- Polychromy
- First repolychromy
- Technique(s): oil, oil gilding
- Material(s): metal leaf, metallic pigment, oil
Comment
The side altar has one repolychromy. The original polychromy of the architecture was polished silver on red bole with a final coating of coloured varnish. The sculptures and ornaments imitate gold.
The construction of the altar is in stable condition. The lime wood of the sculptures is badly infected by wood-boring insects. The ground is lifting, cracking and there are some paint losses. Some gilded parts are covered with metal leaves and bronze painting.
Images
- The side altar of the Virgin Mary in the Parish Church of St Peter in Malečnik (Institute for the Protection of Cultural Heritage of Slovenia, photo by Valentin Benedik, 2018)
- The upper part of the side altar of the Virgin Mary in Malečnik (Institute for the Protection of Cultural Heritage of Slovenia, photo by Valentin Benedik, 2018)
- The sculpture of the Virgin Mary (Institute for the Protection of Cultural Heritage of Slovenia, photo by Valentin Benedik, 2018)
- The sculpture of St Joachim (Institute for the Protection of Cultural Heritage of Slovenia, photo by Valentin Benedik, 2018)
Catalogue entry prepared by Valentina Pavlič and Saša Dolinšek
Recommended citation: Valentina Pavlič and Saša Dolinšek, Side Altar of the Virgin Mary in the Parish Church of St Peter in Malečnik, in: TrArS – Tracing the Art of the Straub Family, 2018, (accessed 24/10/2025) URL
