Christ Child with Grapes
by GERHAERT VAN LEYDEN, Nicolaus, Polychrome limewood, height 41 cm
The humanization of the holy was one of the persistent characteristics of fifteenth- and early sixteenth-century art. The exquisite statue by Gerhaert is an example. The playful child is nude to demonstrate Christ’s humanity, and the naturalistic pose and delicate polychromy heighten the statue’s verisimilitude.