Ein Reliquienrahmen aus der Zeit des Rokoko

Untersuchungen zur originalen Polychromie

Abstract

A Rococo Reliquary Frame. Examination of its Original Polychromy
White polychromy on wooden sculptures and furniture enjoyed great popularity particularly since the mid of the 18th century. Numerous written sources from that period testify to this fashion. First of all, white polychromy was used to imitate other, costlier materials such as marble, alabaster or porcelain. Furthermore, when because of the physical properties of media – such as stone or china – a realisation of large-sized or delicate objects became impossible, craftsmen resorted to a material imitating polychromy. Despite its popularity, only a few objects with this sumptuous polychromy have survived unchanged. In-depth examinations and analyses were necessary to detect a polished white polychromy, a so-called Polierweißfassung, underneath the overpainting on a frame for a relic from the collection of the Germanisches Nationalmuseum Nuremberg, dated 1760/70. The reliquary originally painted in Porzellanart (in the style of porcelain), and its analyses are presented in the following article.