Christ as the Man of Sorrows

Entry

In the late Middle Ages, simple pipeclay (white-firing clay) sculptures such as this were serially produced in the Low Countries using moulds.² Utrecht was unquestionably an important centre for the production of pipeclay devotional objects, as the large number of moulds and misfires unearthed there attest.³ The present relief depicting Christ as the Man of Sorrows was unearthed during the demolition of the Utrecht city ramparts near the Tolsteegpoort in 1844, together with a similar relief (BK-KOG-1272-N), a large number of other pipeclay miniature sculptures as well as (fragments and moulds of) larger pipeclay figures of saints.⁴ Contrary to the larger figures, which were hollow, the smaller variants are solid.⁵ They were also produced in larger editions: vast quantities of (virtually) identical figurines have been unearthed during excavation campaigns in the centres of medieval cities and on the grounds of (former) monastic complexes.⁶ Thanks to the serial production method and the inexpensive material in which they were made, these figurines were affordable for almost any individual living in the Middle Ages. The convenient format also made these kinds of miniature sculptures ideally suited for carrying in one’s clothing. Besides serving as aids for private devotion, such objects could also be used as a talisman or ‘pocket saint’ to protect the devout Christian against danger, illness and misfortune.⁷

Bieke van der Mark, 2024