Deposition of Christ

Lacking plentiful supplies of marble, Northern artists turned to dense, even- and fine-grained woods—such as boxwood and fruitwood—for their sculpture. Because these woods can be brought to a high polish, such sculpture can assume the appearance of bronze. However, given the limited size of the trees and shrubs, these carvings could be rendered only in relatively small sizes. Most of the reliefs on display here were used as intimate devotional images in private homes.