In 1453, Master Bolfgang painted the entire eastern bay of the north nave of the Crngrob pilgrimage church. In addition to two scenes (Nativity of Jesus, Adoration of the Magi), the triangular vault sections are adorned with depictions of saints. Among them is a group of four full-figure saints with crowns, set against a neutral blue background: on the far left, St Dorothea, in a slight bow, extends her right hand towards a child offering her a basket of flowers; next to her is St Catherine, holding the torture wheel with her right hand; then St Barbara with a tower in her left hand; and finally St Margaret with a dragon at her feet. The virgins are dressed in simple, monochrome garments, with the exception of St Margaret, who wears a lavish cloak with stencilled ornaments combining palmettes, stylised pomegranates and pairs of birds with outstretched wings.
The surface of the painting is quite deteriorated and details are poorly visible. The best preserved of the figures is St Margaret, whose facial features, gracefully rendered in colour, and poised right hand holding the cloak that had slipped from her left shoulder possess a remarkable elegance. The drapery falls with gravity, following the style of realism in the Gothic art from the Upper Rhine, which Master Bolfgang encountered on his first study trip to the German lands.
Crngrob, pilgrimage Church of the
Annunciation