Artworks Catalogue

Location

Slovenia, Ptuj

Parish Church of St George (Župnijska cerkev sv. Jurija)

Artwork

The Side Altar of Our Lady of Sorrows in the Parish Church of St George in Ptuj

Type

Side altar

Critical History

According to the church chronicle, the chapel of Our Lady of Sorrows was built in 1737–1738 on the place where the chapel of St Rupert once stood. The builder was Andreas Tirnperger, while Franz Anton Pachmayr and Anton Lerchinger made the frescos.1The authors of the stucco marble of the altar of Our Lady of Sorrows, which dates from 1745, were Joseph Haas and the widow Cecilia Pielich.2 The altar was attributed to Philipp Jakob Straub by Sergej Vrišer.3

There is a sculpture of the Pietà in the central niche, which dates from the 15^th century and was saved from the old altar of St Rupert. On the sides, there are two sculptures of angels with elongated bodies, elegant postures and gentle faces. In the upper part of the altar, there is a sculpture of God the Father with a globe, surrounded by putti and angel heads. There are also two kneeling angels on the volutes.

Construction / Execution

The altar is placed directly beside the wall. The sculptures and architectural construction are made of wood. The architecture imitates marble, the ornaments imitate gold. The sculptures are painted naturalistically with gilded drapery and wings. The clouds in the attic imitate silver.

Components

Carpentry

Carpentry

Technique(s): sawing

Material(s): wood

Sculpture

Sculpture

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

Technique(s): wood carving

Material(s): limewood

Polychromy

Polychromy

Technique(s): oil, water gilding

Material(s): calcium carbonate, gold leaf, red bole, silver leaf, size

Polychromy

First repolychromy

Technique(s): oil, tempera

Comment

All the parts of the altar architecture are made of a wooden support which is covered with plastered marble. The sculptures are made of wood and are polychromed. They are painted in a naturalistic manner and have gilded drapery and wings. The repolychromy was applied to some parts of the sculptures.

The ground of the polychromy is cracking, lifting and falling off. The golden surfaces on some areas are overpainted with bronze. The silver on the clouds tarnished because it was not covered with protecting varnish. The plastered marble is chalking and falling off in many places.

Images

1. The side altar of Our Lady of Sorrows in the Parish Church of St George (Institute for the Protection of Cultural Heritage of Slovenia, photo by Valentin Benedik, 2018)
2. The upper part of the side altar of Our Lady of Sorrows in Ptuj (Institute for the Protection of Cultural Heritage of Slovenia, photo by Valentin Benedik, 2018)
3. The sculpture of an angel on the side altar of Our Lady of Sorrows in Ptuj (Institute for the Protection of Cultural Heritage of Slovenia, photo by Valentin Benedik, 2018)
4. The sculpture of an angel on the side altar of Our Lady of Sorrows in Ptuj, detail (Institute for the Protection of Cultural Heritage of Slovenia, photo by Valentin Benedik, 2018)