Saint Lawrence (c. 1490–1500): Art, History and Details

Saint Lawrence (c. 1490–1500) is in the Cleveland Museum of Art collection.

The work and its context

The museum's open-access catalogue describes the work:

Lawrence of Rome (about 225–258 CE) was one of the seven deacons of ancient Rome martyred in 258 CE, and became one of the most widely venerated saints during the Middle Ages. According to tradition, he met his martyrdom by being roasted on a gridiron, an attribute which he either holds or stands upon in art. (See a depiction of him by Tilman Riemenschneider nearby in this gallery.) Lawrence is always portrayed as a young man wearing the deacon’s dalmatic. The original source and context of this sculpture is not known. Since it is not carved in the round, it was likely placed within the niche of a large altarpiece.

Object facts

• Title: Saint Lawrence
• Date: c. 1490–1500
• Culture: Austria, South Tyrol, late 15th century
• Type: Sculpture
• Technique: lindenwood
• Dimensions: Overall: 90 cm (35 7/16 in.)
• Collection: MED - Gothic
• Department: Medieval Art
• Accession number: 1990.5

Collection credit

Andrew R. and Martha Holden Jennings Fund

Further reading listed by the museum

• Turner, Evan H. “Acquisitions: 1990.” The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art 78, no. 2 (February 1991): 30–45.

View the collection record

See the museum's photographs and full catalogue entry. Catalogue text is reproduced from the Cleveland Museum of Art's open-access data, with HTML formatting removed. This object and its supplied image are designated CC0.