Small Pieta in Eltville
by Sarah Loft
Title
Small Pieta in Eltville
Artist
Sarah Loft
Medium
Photograph - Photograph
Description
This relief sculpture was attached to the exterior of an old German half timber house in the town of Eltville on the Rhine. It isn't at all unusual to find religious art on medieval German houses and secular buildings, usually statues of the Virgin Mary with the child Jesus or other saints, but the subject in this case was unusual for house decor and I thought also extraordinarily beautiful.
Per Wikipedia: The Pieta' is a subject in Christian art depicting the Virgin Mary cradling the dead body of Jesus, most often found in sculpture. As such, it is a particular form of the Lamentation of Christ, a scene from the Passion of Christ found in cycles of the Life of Christ. When Christ and the Virgin are surrounded by other figures from the New Testament, the subject is strictly called a Lamentation in English, although Pieta is often used for this as well, and is the normal term in Italian.
A famous example by Michelangelo is located in St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican City.
Per Wikipedia: Eltville am Rhein is a town in the Rheingau-Taunus-Kreis in the Regierungsbezirk of Darmstadt in Hesse, Germany. It lies on the German Timber-Frame Road (Fachwerkstrasse). Eltville is the biggest town in the Rheingau.
The earliest traces of humans settling here go back to the New Stone Age. There has been continuous habitation since the late 4th century. Eltville had its first documentary mention in Vita Bardonis (Bardo's life) from 1058, a biography of Archbishop Bardo of Mainz. In 1329, the archiepiscopal castle and the town wall around Eltville were built. On 23 August 1332, Emperor Louis the Bavarian granted Eltville town rights. With the granting of town rights, Eltville ended up being a pawn in the then ongoing dispute between the Emperor and the Pope. Archbishop Baldwin, one of Emperor Louis's followers and administrator of the Mainz monastery, was the one who asked for Eltville to be raised to town. From 1347 to 1480, Eltville was the residence of the Archbishops of Mainz.
Eltville is touristically developed and well known for its wine and sekt production, which can be sampled at many wineries and Strausswirtschaften (seasonal wine shops). Of particular importance is the Vinothek, which brings together every leading estate's wines so that wine lovers can compare the products. It is the only local Vinothek in the Rheingau and one of few in Germany.
Note: The watermark will not appear on the print you purchase.
Featured in the Christian Theme Artwork Group, October 2016.
Featured in the Art From the Past group, October 2016.
Featured in the No Place Like Home group, June 2019.
Uploaded
October 9th, 2016
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