Christ-John group

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Sculpture from the early 14th century, Bavarian National Museum, Munich

The Christ-John group is a motif of Christian iconography known since the Gothic period , in which the apostle John leans his head on the breast of Jesus. It developed from the biblical report that at the Last Supper the “favorite disciple” of Jesus, John, rested on Christ's breast (cf. Jn 13 : 23-25  EU ).

The two-figure group of Christ and John was, as it were, detached from the scenic context of the Lord's Supper and isolated. The interest of this topic lay in the representation of a special closeness of John to Christ, in which the viewer could put himself in the position of the devotion in front of the picture work (so-called devotional picture ).

iconography

The sculptures vary in size, but are otherwise very similar: John sits on Christ's left side and lays his head on his chest. Most of the time, Christ places his left hand on John's shoulder and both hands reach out to each other. This gesture can be understood as a symbol for the union of John with Christ, see wedding (Roman antiquity) , probably with reference to the frequent interpretation of Christ as bridegroom ( sponsus , referring to the Song of Solomon ( Hld 2,6  EU ) ) and the church, represented here by John, as bride ( sponsa ).

Corresponding to the mysticism of the 14th century, however, the type of lovers could also be seen in general. Monastic women's communities in particular were able to find an object of identification in the ideal young disciple, expressly venerated for his 'virginity' sake, and experienced their spiritual union with God in deepest mystical immersion, the unio mystica . "The old idea that John received visionary secrets on the Lord's breast was also familiar to the nuns competing for grace."

The sculptures

The first representations of the subject can occasionally be found in book illumination since the 12th century.

Around 1300 sculptural groups were created in south-west German convents of the Dominican Order. Half of the 28 sculptures that are known date from the 14th century. Most of the sculptures are made of wood, some of them also made of clay or silver, they vary in size from 15 cm to 135 cm. You can roughly distinguish between two different types. In one type, Christ sits upright and looks straight ahead. The right hands only touch with the fingertips and form almost a straight line. A prime example of this solemn, comparatively archaic variant is the group that was probably created in Zwiefalten around 1280/90 and is now in the Cleveland Museum of Art . In the more soulful variant, which merges the people more strongly with one another, Christ tilts his head towards John, the right hands lie tightly together and form a slope or an arch together with the arms. Christ's left hand grasps the disciple's shoulder in such a way that it can hardly be seen from the front. The most famous example of this variant is the group, created around 1300–1312 by the hand of the master Heinrich von Konstanz from the St. Katharinenthal monastery in Switzerland. It is now in the Mayer van den Bergh Museum , Antwerp.

Since the middle of the 14th century, the image has developed in new forms. The replicas no longer do justice to the original request.

  • Inzigkofen near Sigmaringen, around 1320, Berlin, State Museums

  • Adelhausen Monastery, 1330–1340, Liebieghaus , Frankfurt am Main

  • Lake Constance area, around 1310, Bode Museum Berlin

  • unknown origin, 1320–1330, Bavarian National Museum, Munich

In individual cases, Christ-John groups are also referred to as "John minne ". However, under St. John Minne, above all, the rich and drinking of the blessed St. John wine on the feast of the apostle and evangelist John (December 27th) and as a farewell or death drink is understood.

swell

  • BeyArs art dictionary
  • Justin Lang: A concern of the heart: the mysticism of medieval Christ-John groups . Ostfildern 1994, ISBN 3-7966-0695-4
  • Hans Wentzel : The Christ-John groups of the 14th century. (Work monographs on the fine arts in Reclam's Universal Library 51) Reclam, Stuttgart 1960.

literature

  • Reiner Haussherr : About the Christ-John groups: on the problem of “devotional images” and German mysticism. In: Contributions to the art of the Middle Ages: Festschrift for Hans Wentzel on his 60th birthday , Rüdiger Becksmann , Ulf-Dietrich Korn, Johannes Zahlten (eds.). Mann, Berlin 1975, pp. 79-103.
  • Anton Schmidt, Kurt Goldammer : Scholasticism. Church art in the Middle Ages . Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, Göttingen 1969, ISBN 3-525-52328-9 , p. G 215 ( digitized version )
  • Gertrud Schiller : Iconography of Christian Art. Gütersloher Verlagshaus G. Mohn, Gütersloh 1966, ISBN 3-579-04138-X , p. 98.

Web links

Commons : Johannesminne  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Cf. Justin Lang: Heart Issues: The Mysticism of Medieval Christ-John Groups . Ostfildern 1994, pp. 18-20.
  2. ↑ Cf. Justin Lang: Heart Issues: The Mysticism of Medieval Christ-John Groups . Ostfildern 1994, pp. 20f.
  3. ↑ Detlef Zinke: Augustinermuseum Freiburg, pictorial works of the Middle Ages and the Renaissance 1100-1530. Selection catalog . Munich 1995, Hirmer, pp. 26-29.
  4. ↑ https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1928.753#