Cleveland Museum of Art

St. John the Baptist

Martin Schongauer

Date

c. 1475

Medium

engraving

Culture

Germany

Department

Prints

Institution

Cleveland Museum of Art

Martin Schongauer was among the first artists to work extensively in engraving to create series such as the one depicting the saints. Here, he represented Saint John the Baptist as a thin ascetic man holding a book at the top of which is the Lamb of God. Schongauer's engraved lines inventively emulate different natural qualities and textures, for example the camel fur of John's robe and the spiraling locks of his hair. In his gospel, Saint John identifies Christ as the "Lamb of God," and so the saint is often portrayed holding a lamb with a cruciform staff, symbolizing Christ victorious over death.

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