Heilige in Wachs

Kunsttechnische Untersuchung dreier Reliquiare aus der Kaiserlichen Schatzkammer Wien

Abstract

Saints in Wax. An Art-Technical Study of Three Reliquaries from the Imperial Treasury, Vienna
The Imperial Treasury of the Kunsthistorisches Museum Wien (KHM) holds three reliquaries, dating from around 1600, each with a wax figure of a saint. Two of these reliquaries, those of St Tiburtius and St Valerianus, are designed as a pair and are attributed to Hans Krumper from Munich. The third reliquary, that of St Elisabeth, is attributed to the circle of Matthias Walbaum from Augsburg. This paper presents the results of the technical examination of the modelled wax figures, focusing on the wax mixtures, and compares them with instructions from technical art treatises. The wax mixtures consist of beeswax, pine resin and Venice turpentine and were coloured with common colourants, as shown by GC-MS and SEM-EDX analyis. The wax figures were fitted with glass eyes and real hair to create a lifelike appearance. The comparison of the findings with art-technical sources shows that many of the instructions for working with wax recorded in the 18th and 19th centuries can already be found around 1600.