Ars: časopis Ústavu Dejín Umenia Slovenskej Akadémie Vied (46.2013)

I.Ecce Homo, ascribed to Paul Egill, around 1725, 17.7 X 15.7 cm with
frame, ivory oval with wooden frame, excellent condition, theframe several
times broken andpièces missing. Vienna, Art HistmcalMuseum, Secular
andEcclesiasticalTreasury, Inv. No. 3660. Repro: LANKHEIT1988
(see in note 4), Vol. 2, pl. 35.

the 1720s. They are made from ivory6 and embedded
in wooden frames decorated with fine ornamenta-
tion. The Dépositionfrom the Cross scene, however, was

worked twenty years after, but its contents are dosely
related to that of the bas-relief with the Lamentation
of Christ. Contrary to the two other bas-reliefs it is
carved from lime wood, a medium which has been
favoured by German carvers since medieval times.6 7 8
Starting with the analysis of the Ecce Homo tablet
[Fig. 1], one finds that the expression of the face of
Christ within the image may have been shaped in
analogy to the expression of rapture. It is described
by Charles Le Brun: “... the head is bended towards the
heart, the eyebrows are drawn upwards, also the pupils. The
eyes are directed towards the sfr... The half open mouth bas
an appeal of subjection and the attention of a soul towards
something that is regarded to be superior”* Although the
expression is very close to the one described, it
becomes clear from the expression of Christ’s face
that it is modeled after paintings by Guido Reni. Like
them, Egell’s tablet represents the Lord in suffering
instead of rapture. This is emphasized by the bags
under his eyes as well as his hollow cheeks. The
mouth with corners turned down, is half open as
if to sigh. The half-length hair with curly ends and
his little chin-beard emphasize the youthfulness of
the figure of Christ. A piece of cloth with ragged,
acute ends that reach across the wooden frame is
thrown around his shoulders. The garment is closed
by a chain. It underlines the meagerness of his ap-
pearance. Rather unusual for this kind of depiction
is the sad looking cherub, half covered by a piece
of cloth, beneath Christ’s left shoulder. The cane,
held by the Cherub, was given to Christ instead of a
scepter during the Coronation of Thorns. Together
with the chain and the Crown of Thorns it repre-
sents some of the instruments of passion or arma
Christi, by which the iconographie type of the Ecce
Homo is defined.9 Also the youthful type of the face

6 German carvers of ivory were appreciated even in Italy for
their mastery of the material. - KREMPEL, L.: Georg Petel
1601/02— 1634. Bildhauer im Dreißigjährigen Krieg. [Exhib. Cat.]
München, Haus der Kunst. München 2007, pp. 21-22.
7 BAXANDALL, M.: Die Kunst der Bildschnitzer. Tilmann Riemen-
schneider, Veit Stoß u. ihre Zeitgenossen. Frankfurt a. M. 1984.
8 “Car la tête sera penchée du côté du coeur, et le sourcils élevés en haut, et la
prunelle sera de même. Ea têtepenchée comme je viens de dire, semble marquer
l’abaissement de l’âme? — LE BRUN, C.: E’Expression des Passions et
autres confirmées. Correspondance. Paris 1994 (ls,ed. 1727), p. 72. See

in general HENNING, A. — WEBER, G. J. M.: Die Physiog-
nomie der Vision, Inspiration und Anbetung. In: Der himmelnde
Blick. Zur Geschichte eines Bildmotivs von Raffael bis Rotari. [Exhib.
Cat.] Dresden, Staatliche Kunstsammlungen. Dresden 1999.
9 According to Erwin Panofsky the arma Christi promise mercy
to the sinner, but if he does not accept the sacrifice of Christ,
they will turn against him at the day of the Last Judgement.
- PANOFSKY, E.: Imago Pietatis. Ein Beitrag zur Typenge-
schichte des „Schmerzenmanns“ und der „Maria Mediatrix“.
In: Ikonographie (Neue Wege der Forschung). Ed. S. POESCHEL.
Darmstadt 2010, p. 129.

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