John the Baptist 1428 - 1432

This arresting image of John the Baptist was painted in an unknown medium in an unknown place at an unknown time by an anonymous artist. The visual codes reference Christian iconography, with John the Baptist, a pivotal figure known for baptizing Jesus, rendered here within a church-like structure. But what makes this painting so compelling is its current state. The extensive damage challenges our traditional understanding of the artwork as a precious, pristine object. The peeling paint and the large vertical scratch force us to consider its history as a material object, subject to the ravages of time and circumstance. Was it discarded? Neglected? How did it end up here? The questions it poses, and the answers to them, lie in institutional archives, historical records, and conservation reports. Understanding this artwork requires us to become historians as well as art lovers.