Description
In the 13th century, Saint James the Greater, Sant Jaume, occupied an important place in Catalan sculpture, at the crossroads between the late Romanesque tradition and the emergence of the Gothic style. His iconography reflects both the Jacobean fervor associated with pilgrimage and the spiritual and political context of medieval Catalonia.
This sculpture, carved in the round from softwood, depicts Saint James as a pilgrim. Hieratic in stature, he is shown standing. Early in date, the figure is rendered in a primitive manner, still somewhat rigid and frontal, as was customary at the beginning of the 13th century. He holds an open book in his left hand. The jovial features of his face appear benevolent, inviting the viewer to devotion. He wears his pilgrim’s satchel slung across his body, and a cape drapes over his shoulders.
Typical of the Catalan school of the Gothic period, this Saint James, which has retained part of its original polychromy, is a fine and evocative testimony that has come down to us.