Saint Andrew the Apostle

Frans van Loo worked in Mechelen, one of the important cultural centres of the Netherlands. The influence of the paintings of Rubens can clearly be detected on his statues. This small boxwood statuette was part of a series depicting Christ and the twelve apostles. The apostle’s eyes were inlaid with black glass paste, to increase the dramatic effect. Several items from this series have survived: the figures of Christ and two apostles are in Berlin, two statuettes in the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, and three in the Schnütgen Museum in Cologne.
Miriam Szőcs