Simon Fries

This impressive seated Saint in armour undoubtedly originates from a Baroque altar in the Salzburg area. Though his attributes are lost, it is likely that the figure represents Saint Florian, the patron saint of Linz in Austria. Stylistically, the Saint relates to the work of the Swiss-born sculptor Meinrad Guggenbichler (1649-1723), who furnished Austrian churches with exuberant sculptural altarpieces. Compare, in particular, the figures of Saint George and Saint Florian in Guggenbichler's Lochen altar, who display similar plumed helmets and facial features, with aquiline noses and long moustaches (Decker, op. cit., figs. 94-97). A sculptor from Guggenbichler's circle who is likely to be responsible for the present figure is the prolific Salzburg court sculptor Simon Fries, who decorated numerous churches in and around Salzburg. See his Saint George from the High Altar of Franciscan Church in Salzburg (Bildindex Foto Marburg,

https://www.bildindex.de/document/obj20183879?part=1) and his Saint Alban in the Church of St Alban in Lamprechsthausen.

RELATED LITERATURE

H. Decker, Meinrad Guggenbichler, Vienna, 1949