ZÜRN, Michael

German sculptor, part of a family of sculptors. They were among the most important and productive families of sculptors in southern Germany in the 17th century. Hans Zürn the Elder (¹⁵⁵⁵⁄₆₀-after 1631) had six sons, all of whom became sculptors. No documented work of his has survived, but on the basis of his presumed contribution to the high altar in Überlingen Minster, an attractive Crucifix (Wangen, Kapelle am Isnyer Tor) and a bust of St Jacob (Nuremberg, Germanisches Nationalmuseum) have been attributed to him. He frequently collaborated with his sons, the most prominent of these was Jörg Zürn of Überlingen, whose masterpiece was the five-storey Mannerist High Altar in Überlingen Minster. Hans Zürn the Younger (¹⁵⁸⁵⁄₉₀-after 1624) is recorded as a master sculptor in Buchhorn am Bodensee (now Friedrichshafen) in 1613; his only securely attributed work is the wooden altar of the Virgin in St Martin, Wangen.

Martin Zürn (¹⁵⁸⁵⁄₉₀-after 1665) and his younger brothers, Michael, Hans Jakob (active 1617-35) and David (1598-1666), settled in the Inn Valley in eastern Bavaria and Upper Austria and are chiefly known for the altars they carved for many of the churches of that region.