An exceptional crucifix, made by the Maastricht carver Jan van Steffeswert, can finally be admired in the Bonnefantenmuseum after almost 20 years of restoration.
Van Steffeswert was an artist who made several crucifixes in the early sixteenth century, depicting the suffering of Jesus Christ in his own distinctive style.
Twenty layers
The restoration of the crucifix was one of the largest restoration projects of Stichting Restauratie Atelier Limburg (SRAL) and the Bonnefantenmuseum. It took this long mainly because of getting rid of the small 20 layers that covered the original paint layer from the year 1500. This made the dramatic drops of blood as it was then modern again visible.
‘Decent job’
About every 50 years the wooden statue was painted over and over again. On the one hand, this had to do with damage, on the other hand, with fads on crucifixes, says senior restorer Arnold Truyen of SRAL. To get back to the original coating, Truyen tried everything, such as solvent and laser. Still, scraping everything off, layer by layer, was the only solution in the end.
“All the paint layers are oil-painted so it was difficult to get those layers off with solvent. So under a microscope, several years actually, 4,500 hours to be exact, we scraped the layers off with a surgical scalpel. And that was a quite a job,” said Truyens.
To value
In 1983 Van Steffeswert’s crucifix came on loan from the Bonnefantenmuseum. The wooden statue was in the depot, but had not yet been recognized as such. Because there were still around 20 layers of paint on it, it was therefore not immediately appreciated. Still, the artist’s woodcut was special enough to bring it to SRAL, where it was decided to remove all layers. Since 1995, research has been done to see how this could best be done. Later the statue was identified as a copy of Van Steffeswert.
wandering
Van Steffeswert was probably born in 1460 and worked in Maastricht in 1488. The statue is dated between 1500 and 1510, probably from the Nieuwenhofkapel in Maastricht, a beguinage. The crucifix has roamed and been in several places. That is why it is all the more special that the statue ultimately remained in Limburg.
Own style
According to experts, the style of the woodcarver shows great craftsmanship. His woodcuts are very characteristic and very detailed. According to many, the expression with which the artist depicts the suffering of Christ is of a high level, which can be seen in several elements. For example at the crown of thorns, where the sharp bulges in Christ’s head disappear and pierce below his eye socket.
Also abroad
Despite the painstaking work involved in the restoration, the result was impressive and visitors can see the crucifix in the Bonnefantenmuseum since this month. Yet his name reaches further than Limburg and the Netherlands.
Although the Bonnefantenmuseum has the largest collection of the Limburg carver and purchased a wooden art object by him during the last physical TEFAF edition, foreign museums also collect his work. According to director Stijn Huijts of the Bonnefantenmuseum, even the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York has his work in its collection.