Stage 1 (Straža)

Corpus » Succursal church of St Thomas

Interactive drawing

Art-historical analysis

Fragments of the mural have been preserved only on the inner band and on the nave side of the triumphal arch. Today, just the two partially preserved figures on the inner band of the triumphal arch are presented. The unrestored fragments on the nave part of the triumphal arch are now located behind the two side altars.[1] Only a fragment of a youthful, beardless face with large almond-shaped eyes and small red lips has been preserved on the northern side of the inner band of the triumphal arch. Although the face is only preserved from its chin to the middle of the forehead, it is obvious that the figure’s long blond hair falls freely on the shoulders, while the head is surrounded by a halo with a simple bordure consisting of alternating brownish and reddish dots. The background is a uniform greyish blue, while on the left side, at the very edge of the wall, a part of a painted column with a simple ring as a capital has been preserved, above which the top of the arcade begins. The drawing is dark brown, while the architectural elements are white and decorated with highly stylised floral patterns. At the top is a rather broad bordure with a zigzag band consisting of red and white fields on a dark blue background. Each of the dark blue triangles also contains three white dots. The mural on the southern interior band of the triumphal arch also features identically designed architectural elements, a dark background, and a zigzag bordure. Nowadays, two larger fragments, which used to be more fragmented before the restoration, are preserved in this spot. The lower one features a band of white squares painted on the bottom (four remain visible), in which some sort of flowers with a pink dot in the centre are painted in reddish-brown colour. What remains of toes showing from under a cloak and covering a part of the best-preserved square suggests that this band represented the ground on which the saint was standing. The upper fragment features much of the top part of a male figure wearing a red undergarment and a pink cloak over the shoulders. In his left hand, the man holds a closed book in front of his chest, while with his right, he is lifting an unusual object – a larger circle with a wide red edge and a bright centre, from which a smaller white cross with a flag rises. His face is simple, with almond-shaped eyes and dark pupils, a long grey beard, and a bald spot on the crown of his head, while long grey hair falls to his shoulders at the sides. A yellow halo with a lighter edging with dots surrounds his head.

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[1] Photographs from the time before the altars were installed are kept in the documentation of the Institute for the Protection of Cultural Heritage of Slovenia, Novo mesto regional unit.

Only a few parts of the mural have been preserved, which – as is evident from the documentation of the Institute for the Protection of Cultural Heritage of Slovenia, Novo mesto regional unit – are severely deteriorated. The two presented fragments on the inner band of the triumphal arch were extensively restored and completed during the restoration.

The modest state of preservation does not allow for a particularly in-depth stylistic analysis. Despite the severe deterioration and completed restoration, the fragments on the inner band of the triumphal arch nevertheless reveal that the artwork was not of particularly high quality, while the preserved layers of the mural also indicate the absence of the more expensive pigments (azurite, etc.). Still, the painting can be placed quite reliably in the more provincial trends of the High Gothic linear style in Slovenia: the emphasis is on the drawing, while the two preserved figures have characteristic almond-shaped eyes. This style is also characterised by architectural and other decorative forms: the zigzag band above the figures, the simply designed architecture of the arcades where it is not entirely clear whether they aim to be semi-circular or triangular, and the rhomboid decorative elements on the columns, shaped like simple acanthus quatrefoils. While the comparisons pointed out by Tanja Zimmermann and Robert Peskar are indeed helpful in terms of determining an approximate stylistic stage and consequently dating, it is difficult to establish any concrete connections.[1]

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[1] See The state of research section.

Due to its poor preservation and modest quality, the mural’s dating is quite uncertain, but it was probably painted in the second quarter of the 14th century.

An unknown, perhaps local painter.

Due to poor preservation, the figures cannot be identified with certainty. The saintly figure on the northern side corresponds to the type of St John the Evangelist with a youthful beardless face, blond hair down to the shoulders, and a red garment. Meanwhile, the figure of the elderly man on the southern side of the interior band of the triumphal arch fits the type of a grey-haired bearded old man with a bald spot on the crown of his head that corresponds to St Peter. However, the figure brandishes a very unusual attribute that can hardly be interpreted as a key. Tanja Zimmermann’s interpretation that the figure might be St John the Evangelist was probably based on the motif of the cross with a flag,[1] but the type of figure with a grey-haired bald head does not support this assumption.

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[1] ZIMMERMANN 1996, pp. 56, 199.

If the two preserved figures represent apostles, the mural may have adhered to the iconographic system that would later lead to the so-called Carniolan Presbytery.[1]

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[1] PESKAR 1997, pp. 70, 86.

Technical analysis

Pigments: white lime (calcite), yellow earth, red earth (haematite), organic black (unidentified)

Analytical techniques: OM, Raman

Two different plasters appear to have been used: a darker and more brittle one for the lower and upper parts of the St Peter scene (the floor and the bordure), while another brighter, almost white plaster was used for the central part of the mural. Such bright plaster can also be found under the scene with the female saint (hitherto identified as St John the Evangelist?) on the opposite side. The two different plasters are also revealed, at least visually, by the cross-sections (figs. 1–2), where it is possible to make out the yellowish grains of the darker plaster in some places. As only fragments of the two scenes have been preserved, it is impossible to distinguish any giornate, but each figure was likely painted during a single day’s work.

The cross-sections confirm the use of yellow and red earth, which can be identified based on the granulation of the pigment in the colour layer. Raman spectroscopy confirmed the use of haematite. There is no blue pigment: the blue background is an optical effect achieved with the black colour, as indicated by the cross-section. For this, a certain organic black pigment that the Raman spectroscopy has failed to identify was used. The white colour is white lime (calcite). Lime also served as the main binder, though some organic binder – egg yolk, animal glue, or casein – was also used to apply the final colour layers.

The mural is a combination of the al fresco (fig. 1), al secco (fig. 2), and perhaps also lime technique, as suggested by the pattern in the background of the female saint scene (fig. 3).

The painting has been severely damaged, and several parts are missing. It has also been heavily retouched, so it is difficult to discern the work of the original artist. Transversal light reveals very thin, barely visible and very shallow incisions into the fresh plaster, which the painter used for the lines of the zigzag bordure and the architectural elements to the left and right of the two figures. For the architectural elements, he probably used a yellow underdrawing, as a broad ochre line shows from under the black contour of the side columns to the left and right of St Peter’s head (fig. 4). The master drew the figures in red colour, noticeable in several places: on St Peter’s forehead and under the black contour of his right arm and neck. The image of the female saint also reveals a thin brick-red underdrawing between her hair and the right side of her face (fig. 5). The modelling was based on the local tones used for the background, draperies, carnations, and hair. It is not possible to discuss any underpainting. The painter mostly used broad brushes for both the contours and to apply the colour layers. There are no soft transitions between the hues. The hands and feet are exceedingly schematic and feature thick, inarticulate fingers. On the toes, the artist also drew nails. St Peter’s feet are painted over the background/floor (fig. 6), so the figures were created later than the backgrounds. The faces are relatively simple: the painter drew the semicircular eyebrows, nose, large almond-shaped eyes, and mouth using a broad brown line. The lips, separated by a brown line, are further modelled in red, which, however, has faded considerably. Meanwhile, the heart-shaped mouth of the female saint (hitherto identified as St John the Evangelist?) is emphasised, clearly distinguishing the female figure from the male (fig. 5). The inner eyebrow continues into a potato-shaped nose without nostrils in a single stroke. The female carnation is light pink, while the male is light ochre. No modelling is visible, but that could also be due to poor preservation. St Peter has light grey hair with a tonsure and a long beard. In some places, thin dark grey streaks of individual hairs are still visible. The hair of the female saint is ochre, with dark strands still noticeable here and there. The draperies are painted in broad strokes in flat colours without any highlights or shading, modelled only using black contours for some of the folds.

Gallery

Virtual 360° view

Straža, Succursal church of St Thomas, Stage 1 (Straža), 2024 (last updated 29. 8. 2024). Corpus picturarum muralium medii aevi, https://corpuspicturarum.zrc-sazu.si/en/poslikava/phase-1-straza/ (8. 7. 2025).

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