A HALF-LENTH FIGURE OF A VIRGIN OR A FEMALE SAINT AS PROCESSION FIGURE

Description:

Austrian or Upper Italy, 18th century
H. 65 cm
Swiss pine, carved in full round. The upper body is slender and suggests a vestment. The polychromy and flesh colour are overpainted, the Christ Child on the left arm does not match. Restorations, age damages.
Private collection, Stuttgart
The extremely slender figure and the merely sketchy outline of her robe suggest that the Madonna or Saint was conceived as a procession figure, which was festively dressed in textiles for the celebrations. This type of procession figure was common in Southern European Catholic countries such as Italy and Spain, but is also known from Bavaria and Austria.