Master Paul from Levoča was the most important Spiš wood-carver at the turn of the 16th century. The outstanding achievement of his workshop is the main altar of the Parish Church of St James in Levoča, created between the years 1508 and...
moreMaster Paul from Levoča was the most important Spiš wood-carver at the turn of the 16th century. The outstanding achievement of his workshop is the main altar of the Parish Church of St James in Levoča, created between the years 1508 and ca. 1514. Master Paul, however, was active in other towns and regions also: in Kežmarok, Banská Bystrica, Spišské Vlachy, Prešov and Sabinov. His co-workers, who brought his characteristic idealising style (close to that of the Nuremberg sculptor Veit Stoss) even further afield, created still more altars, crucifixes, and free-standing statues.
The paper is dedicated to one of the most monumental Crucifixions that can be attributed directly to Master Paul, situated today in the shrine of the Highaltar of the Parish Church of the Holy Cross in Kežmarok, Slovakia (Germ.: Käsmark; Hung.: Késmárk). It discusses the place of the artefact in a context of the sculptor´s oeuvre as well as its possible original use as reconstructed from the younger sources concerning the church furnishings.
