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Christ Riding a Donkey

Christ Riding a Donkey

Currently unknown artist or artists

This sculpture references the biblical story of Christ riding a humble donkey into Jerusalem. It was likely designed to be pulled through the streets on a cart as part of a reenactment of the story during Palm Sunday celebrations, held one week before Easter. Sculptures of this type, called Palmesel (palm donkeys), were popular in southern Germany and Austria, and the earliest surviving examples date to the 11th century.
Artist/Maker
Currently unknown artist or artists
(Austrian)
Title
Christ Riding a Donkey
Date
around 1450
Material & Process
Polychrome wood
Dimensions
61 x 56 3/4 x 19 3/4 in. Overall
Credit
Elvehjem Museum of Art Membership Fund purchase through the Glenn McHugh Bequest
Inventory No.
1977.2
Classification
Sculpture
Location
Austria

Related

to ca. 1970, Count Wilczek, Burg Kreuzenstein (near Vienna, Austria); ca. 1970 sold to [film director] John Huston (St. Clerans, Craughwell, County Galway, Ireland) [1]; 1976-1977, Barling of Mount Street Ltd. (London, England); 1977, sold by Barling of Mount Street, Ltd. to the Elvehjem Art Center [now Chazen Museum of Art]. [1] according to letter from Inge Bienenstein, Atelier I Bienenstein (Vienna) to Raffaello Amati, Antiquus (London) (received on July 1, 1977).

  • Holcomb, Melanie, Maria Saffiotti Dale, and Catherine Janis. "A Guide to Medieval Art in Midwestern Campus Collections," in Christina Nielsen, ed., "To Inspire and Instruct: A History of Medieval Art in Midwestern Museums." Cambridge, UK: Cambridge Scholars Publishing, 2008. p. 189
  • Elvehjem Art Center. "Bulletin 1976-1977." Madison: Elvehjem Art Center, 1977. pp. 13, 14, 58
  • Donnelly, Marian C. "A Note on the Elvehjem Palmesel." Bulletin 1981-1983. Elvehjem Museum of Art (1983): 32-35. pp. 32-35
  • Horlbeck, Frank R. "Gloria, Laud and Honor: The Palmesel and Palm Sunday." Elvehjem Museum of Art Bulletin, 1977-1978. Elvehjem Museum of Art (1978): 26-37. pp. 26-37
  • Elvehjem Museum of Art. "Handbook of the Collection." Elvehjem Museum of Art, University of Wisconsin-Madison. Madison, 1990. p. xii, no. 18
  • Bruzelius, Caroline and Jill Meredith. "The Brummer Collection of Medieval Art: The Duke University Museum of Art." Durham and London: Duke University Press, 1991. p. 233, pl. 32.2
  • Harris, Max. "Christ on a Donkey : Palm Sunday, Triumphal Entries, and Blasphemous Pageants." Kalamazoo: Arc Humanities Press, 2019. pp. 221-222

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Information about artworks presented here may not reflect the most current research. Chazen staff update records as new details emerge; please verify independently for scholarly use and notify us of any errors.