St. Sebastian

Prints and Drawings

1469/74

Martin Schongauer
German, c. 1430/50-1491

The opportunity it offered to show a seminude man in a contorted pose made Saint Sebastian’s martyrdom a popular subject among 15th-century artists. Here the German printmaker Martin Schongauer depicted the saint leaning serenely against a delicately rendered tree, despite the numerous arrows protruding from his body. Schongauer took an iconic, simplified approach to this common theme by barely suggesting the background landscape. Unlike his highly complex, detailed compositions such as Saint John the Evangelist on Patmos (1968.121), this print emphasizes the contrast between the graceful figure of Sebastian bound to the tree and the predominantly blank background.

Status: Currently Off View
Department: Prints and Drawings

Artist: Martin Schongauer
Title: St. Sebastian
Place: Germany (Artist's nationality:)
Date Dates are not always precisely known, but the Art Institute strives to present this information as consistently and legibly as possible. Dates may be represented as a range that spans decades, centuries, dynasties, or periods and may include qualifiers such as c. (circa) or BCE.: 1469–1474
Medium: Engraving on paper
Dimensions: Sheet trimmed to platemark: 15.4 × 11.1 cm (6 1/8 × 4 3/8 in.)
Credit Line: Clarence Buckingham Collection
Reference Number: 1950.20
IIIF Manifest The International Image Interoperability Framework (IIIF) represents a set of open standards that enables rich access to digital media from libraries, archives, museums, and other cultural institutions around the world. Learn more.: https://api.artic.edu/api/v1/artworks/68112/manifest.json

Lehrs 65

Bartsch 59

Hollstein, The New 65

Object information is a work in progress and may be updated as new research findings emerge. To help improve this record, please email . Information about image downloads and licensing is available here.

Suggested Terms

Currently Off View

Date:

Artist:

About this artwork

Status

Department

Artist

Title

Place

Date Dates are not always precisely known, but the Art Institute strives to present this information as consistently and legibly as possible. Dates may be represented as a range that spans decades, centuries, dynasties, or periods and may include qualifiers such as c. (circa) or BCE.

Medium

Dimensions

Credit Line

Reference Number

IIIF Manifest The International Image Interoperability Framework (IIIF) represents a set of open standards that enables rich access to digital media from libraries, archives, museums, and other cultural institutions around the world. Learn more.

Extended information about this artwork

Catalogues Raisonnés

Share

Explore Further

Sign up for our enewsletter to receive updates.

Gallery actions

Image actions

Share

IIIF Manifest The International Image Interoperability Framework (IIIF) represents a set of open standards that enables rich access to digital media from libraries, archives, museums, and other cultural institutions around the world.

Learn more.