Altar of Saint Maurice and the Theban Legion
sculptor
Unknown
Dateabout 1515
Place MadeGermany, Europe
MediumPolychromed poplar
Dimensions131 x 152.5 cm (51 9/16 x 60 1/16 in.)
ClassificationsSculpture
Credit LineIsabella Stewart Gardner Museum, Boston
Accession numberS30e12
eMuseum ID727791
EmbARK ObjectID12818
TMS Source ID1874
Last Updated11/12/24
Status
Not on viewWeb CommentaryThis German or Swiss polychrome wood sculpture shows a group of sixteen warriors in armor surrounding a figure on horseback, likely Saint Maurice and the Theban Legion, a group of Christian soldiers who were martyred in 286. The sculpture was probably part of a larger altarpiece made for a church. When Isabella purchased it in 1892, Saint Maurice was identified as Joan of Arc— a popular persona during World War I and an early feminist icon.
BibliographyNotesCatalogue. Fenway Court. (Boston, 1925), p. 32. (as Saint Joan of Arc)
Gilbert Wendel Longstreet and Morris Carter. General Catalogue (Boston, 1935), p. 263. (as Saint George and thirteen guardian saints, or possibly Saint Gereon and the Thebaic legion; as German, probably Rhenish, early 16th century)
“Notes, Records, Comments.” Gardner Museum Calendar of Events 7, no. 30 (22 Mar. 1964), p. 2.
Anneliese Harding. German Sculpture in New England Museums (Boston, 1972), p. 48, no. 70. (as Saint Gereon or Saint Maurice and the Thebian legion; as Upper Swabia, Memmingen, about 1515)
Cornelius C. Vermeule III et al. Sculpture in the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum (Boston, 1977), p. 97, no. 123. (as Saint Maurice and the Theban legion; Upper Rhenish or Swiss, 1515)
Adrienne Chaparro and Katherine Peters, "A Saint's Many Faces: The Altar of Saint Maurice and the Theban Legion," Inside the Collection (blog), Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, 14 May 2024.
Gilbert Wendel Longstreet and Morris Carter. General Catalogue (Boston, 1935), p. 263. (as Saint George and thirteen guardian saints, or possibly Saint Gereon and the Thebaic legion; as German, probably Rhenish, early 16th century)
“Notes, Records, Comments.” Gardner Museum Calendar of Events 7, no. 30 (22 Mar. 1964), p. 2.
Anneliese Harding. German Sculpture in New England Museums (Boston, 1972), p. 48, no. 70. (as Saint Gereon or Saint Maurice and the Thebian legion; as Upper Swabia, Memmingen, about 1515)
Cornelius C. Vermeule III et al. Sculpture in the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum (Boston, 1977), p. 97, no. 123. (as Saint Maurice and the Theban legion; Upper Rhenish or Swiss, 1515)
Adrienne Chaparro and Katherine Peters, "A Saint's Many Faces: The Altar of Saint Maurice and the Theban Legion," Inside the Collection (blog), Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, 14 May 2024.
ProvenanceNotesPurchased by Isabella Stewart Gardner (as an altar depicting Joan of Arc) from the exporter Charles H. Rafard and his employee Fernand Robert, Paris for 2,500 francs on 9 May 1892.
