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Les saintes femmes au tombeau (Three Holy Women at the Tomb)

George Minne Belgian
modeled 1896, carved before 1918
Not on view
According to Christian tradition, the three holy women uncovered the empty tomb of Jesus Christ, bearing witness to his miraculous resurrection. Minne underscored the mysterious character of the event by completely enveloping the trio in concealing robes. The motif recalls the mourning figures carved on medieval tombs, but the stylized play of drapery and streamlined, simplified masses are the artist’s own invention. First modeled in plaster in 1896, the composition exists in bronze, granite, and wood versions. Conservative critics disparaged Minne’s style as coarse and primitive, but progressive artistic circles in Brussels and Vienna admired its emotional intensity and directness.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Les saintes femmes au tombeau (Three Holy Women at the Tomb)
  • Artist: George Minne (Belgian, Ghent 1866–1941 Sint-Martens-Latem, Belgium)
  • Date: modeled 1896, carved before 1918
  • Culture: Belgian
  • Medium: Varnished oak
  • Dimensions: Overall: 24 × 16 1/8 × 7 7/8 in. (61 × 41 × 20 cm)
  • Classification: Sculpture
  • Credit Line: Gift of Steven Naifeh, from the collection of Gregory White Smith and Steven Naifeh, in celebration of the Museum’s 150th Anniversary, 2018
  • Object Number: 2018.596
  • Curatorial Department: European Sculpture and Decorative Arts

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Small Kneeling Youth, George Minne Belgian, Marble, Belgian
Small Kneeling Youth
George Minne
modeled 1896, carved before 1914
Birth of Comte de Hainault (1859–69), Leopold Wiener Belgian, Bronze, Belgian
Birth of Comte de Hainault (1859–69)
Leopold Wiener
1854
Victory Alighting on Earth, Gilles-Lambert Godecharle, Terracotta, Belgian, Brussels
Victory Alighting on Earth
Gilles-Lambert Godecharle
1809
The Dockhand (Le Débardeur du port d’Anvers), Constantin Meunier Belgian, Bronze, Belgian, Brussels
The Dockhand (Le Débardeur du port d’Anvers)
Constantin Meunier
J. Petermann Foundry
1885, cast before 1902
Theseus Fighting the Centaur Bianor, Antoine-Louis Barye French, Bronze, French, Paris
Theseus Fighting the Centaur Bianor
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modeled 1849, cast ca. 1867

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