The statue of St John of Nepomuk (Fall from the Bridge in the River Vltava) at Calvary Graz
Type
Sculptural group
Dimensions
Height: 130 cm, width: 167 cm, depth: 103 cm
Inscriptions
PH J STRAUB FECIT 1737 (on the base of the statue)
Critical History
The chapel of St John of Nepomuk was built in the second half of the 19th century as a rectangular building with triangular gable.1 It is supposed that the sandstone figures of St John of Nepomuk and his captor, which represent the “Fall from the Bridge in the River Vltava”, were originally erected on a bridge. Thanks to Valentina Pavlič it was noticed that the dates on the base (1737) and in the literature (1734) don’t correspond!
Construction / Execution
The sculpture is made of sandstone, but there are supplemented parts of wood (e.g. right lower leg of the captor).
Components
Sculpture
Author: Philipp Jakob Straub (Wiesensteig 1706 – Graz 1774)
Completed: 1737
Technique(s): stone carving
Material(s): sandstone
Polychromy
Completed: 1737
Conservation-restoration
2002
Strategy: removing dirt
Treatment Description
The last restoration works were done in February 2002 by Christoph Zeller and Mathias Wasmeier (restoration laboratory Zottmann). Before the restoration, the sculpture group was heavily soiled by dust and dirt enrichment. The coatings led to a visual reduction of the colour and the sculptural details. In course of the restoration, the statues were cleaned with an ethanol-water-mixture and defective joints and supplements were removed. The massive loss of legibility through missing parts was fixed by supplements made out of lime mortar. The diverse puttying was integrated in the coloured holding by partial retouching.2
Images
The Glory of St John of Nepomuk, Calvary Graz (photo by Zottmann GmbH, 2002)
St John of Nepomuk, Detail (photo by Zottmann GmbH, 2002)
2. St. John of Nepomuk, Detail (photo by Anja Lindbichler, 2018)
The Captor, Head, Detail (photo by Zottmann GmbH, 2002)
Signature on the base (photo by Anja Lindbichler, 2018)
Catalogue entry prepared by Eva Klein and Christina Pichler
Recommended citation: Eva Klein and Christina Pichler, The statue of St John of Nepomuk (Fall from the Bridge in the River Vltava) at Calvary Graz, in: TrArS – Tracing the Art of the Straub Family, 2018, (accessed 26/10/2025) URL
Sources and Bibliography
Federal Monuments Office in Graz, Jenny Pfeifruck, Restaurierungswerkstatt Zottmann, Hl. Johannes Nepomuk-Kapelle. Kalvarienberg – Graz. Restauratorische Maßnahmen 2002, Graz, May 2018
Dehio. Die Kunstdenkmäler Österreichs. Graz, Wien, Verlag Anton Schroll & Co, 1979
