Pietà
This work depicts the continued suffering of Christ after his death through Mary’s grief. It was likely damaged intentionally by an iconoclast. The sculpture was never melted down, despite Christ’s broken arm and the value of bronze as a raw material, presumably because of Gerhard’s innovative bronze casting methods and workmanship. The beauty of his compositions and quality of his sculpting attracted powerful patrons, including the Fugger family of wealthy Augsburg merchants and Archduke Maximilian III in Innsbruck.
Artwork Details
- Title: Pietà
- Artist: Hubert Gerhard (Netherlandish, 1540/50–1621, active Germany)
- Date: after 1595
- Culture: German
- Medium: Bronze
- Dimensions: Overall (confirmed): 11 5/8 × 6 1/2 × 7 1/2 in. (29.5 × 16.5 × 19.1 cm)
- Classification: Sculpture-Bronze
- Credit Line: Gift of Anthony and Lois Blumka, 2013
- Object Number: 2013.966
- Curatorial Department: European Sculpture and Decorative Arts
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Hubert Gerhard
1605–10
Hubert Gerhard
late 17th century
Hubert Gerhard
ca. 1600
Hubert Gerhard
ca. 1600
Hubert Gerhard
ca. 1600–1625
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