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Lion-Shaped Mascaron

Johann (Jan) Pfister

Basic information

ID: С-II-759
Author: Johann (Jan) Pfister
Name: Lion-Shaped Mascaron
Date of creation: 17th c.
Country: Ukraine
Technique: carving polychromy
Material: wood
Dimensions: 45 x 25.5 cm (height x width)

Additionally

Type: sculpture
Genre: religious
Provenance: Bishche village, Berezhany district, Ternopil region

Information about author

Author: Johann (Jan) Pfister
Artist's lifetime: 1573–1640/1642
Biography: Johann (Jan) Pfister (Jan Hanusz-Snycerz) – a sculptor of German origin, was born in 1573 in the city of Breslau (now Wrocław, Poland) into the family of the painter and sculptor Georg Pfister. He studied under master craftsmen from the Netherlands and Germany (Hans Fleiser, Friedrich Gross, Gerhardt Hendrik). Pfister is considered the most outstanding sculptor of the turn of the 16th–17th centuries who worked in the territories of present-day Ukraine and Poland. He worked predominantly in marble and alabaster, and less frequently in wood. He executed his finest works in Lviv, Berezhany, and Tarnów.
Starting from 1615, commissioned by Adam Hieronim Sieniawski, he began working in Berezhany on the tomb monuments of the noble Sieniawski family: Adam Hieronim and his three sons – Aleksander, Mikołaj, and Prokop. He led a woodcarving school in the town. Working as the court sculptor to the Sieniawskis, he carved altar compositions in the church of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary in the village of Bishche in the Ternopil region, which also belonged to the family. The master worked on the decoration of the altar during the 1630s. Pfister proved himself a highly professional artist who took his first creative steps under the influence of German-Netherlandish Mannerism.

Object description

The mascaron is carved with particular attention to detail and is endowed with a distinctly pronounced emotional character. The stylised lion’s muzzle demonstrates drama and expression. The rendered features are skilfully emphasised by the play of light and shadow, producing a sense of tense dramatic effect. The carving conveys vivid mimicry – the lion’s open mouth, accentuated eyes, and wavy strands of the mane imbued with the energy of movement. Deep wrinkles, the intensity of the gaze, and the highlighted characteristic animal traits create the impression of a living, almost theatrical mask. The decorative quality of the mascaron extends beyond mere architectural ornament, serving instead as a decorative accent imbued with symbolic meaning. It functions not only as a guardian but also as an emotional emphasis, at once instilling fear and impressing with the beauty of the artist’s imagination.

Legal regulation

Borys Voznytskyi Lviv National Art Gallery

Lion-Shaped Mascaron

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