Spanish school, ca.1600

Spanish school, ca.1600
"Profile of St. James the Apostle".
Gilded bronze.
Presents a break in the lower edge.
Measurements: 14 x 10 cm.

Relief in gilded bronze that represents Santiago Apostle in profile, following a typology of clear late Renaissance roots. The sober composition and the net profile refer to classicist models diffused in the Hispanic sculpture of the end of the XVI century, where the Italian influence is integrated with its own devotional sensibility.

The apostle is identified by the pilgrim's shell on his chest, an emblematic attribute linked to the Jacobean cult. The treatment of the hair and beard, with deep and dynamic curls, brings plastic density to the whole, while the collected expression of the face conveys a contained spirituality, characteristic of the transition between Renaissance and early Baroque naturalism.

The gilding reinforces its precious and devotional character, usual in pieces destined for private oratories or small places of worship. Despite the visible break in the lower profile, the work retains its iconographic strength and sculptural quality, constituting an interesting testimony of Spanish religious bronze around 1600.