Saint James Major, part of an altarpiece
Carlo Crivelli
European Art
Saint James Major was one of Christ’s apostles and became the patron saint of pilgrims, those devoted and adventurous Christians who made their way over hundreds of miles to the Holy Land or to the chief pilgrimage churches of Europe. Their connection with James arose from the belief that the apostle had traveled across the Mediterranean as far as Spain to found the famous pilgrimage church Santiago (Spanish for Saint James) de Compostela. The seashell, symbolizing that voyage, and the pilgrim staff are the saint’s usual attributes.
Crivelli is noted for the linear intensity and sculptural hardness of his forms, seen here in the knobby toes and the spiraling curls of hair. However, in this image of the saint, who would have originally been gazing at the Madonna and Child, we also see a certain tenderness, in his pose, his gesture, and the tilt of his head.
Crivelli is noted for the linear intensity and sculptural hardness of his forms, seen here in the knobby toes and the spiraling curls of hair. However, in this image of the saint, who would have originally been gazing at the Madonna and Child, we also see a certain tenderness, in his pose, his gesture, and the tilt of his head.
MEDIUM
Tempera and tooled gold on panel
DATES
1472
DIMENSIONS
38 1/4 × 12 5/8 in. (97.2 × 32.1 cm)
frame: 43 1/2 × 17 1/4 × 3 1/2 in. (110.5 × 43.8 × 8.9 cm) (show scale)
COLLECTIONS
European Art
ACCESSION NUMBER
78.151.10
CREDIT LINE
Bequest of Helen Babbott Sanders
MUSEUM LOCATION
This item is not on view
CAPTION
Carlo Crivelli (Italian, Venetian, Schools of the Venice and the Marches, 1430–1495). Saint James Major, part of an altarpiece, 1472. Tempera and tooled gold on panel, 38 1/4 × 12 5/8 in. (97.2 × 32.1 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Bequest of Helen Babbott Sanders, 78.151.10 (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 78.151.10_SL1.jpg)
IMAGE
overall, 78.151.10_SL1.jpg. Brooklyn Museum photograph
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