Book excerpt: The sculpture of Tilman Riemenschneider stands at the threshold of two eras. Solidly anchored in the late Gothic tradition, it is also astonishingly daring. Riemenschneider, who was active in Wurzburg from around 1483 until 1531, was one of the first sculptors to abandon polychromy on occasion, making a conscious aesthetic decision to leave visible his favored material, limewood. His sculpture strikes a rare balance between formal elegance and expressive strength, and it is among the most appealing work of the late Middle Ages. The approximately fifty works documented in this handsome volume offer a fresh look at this great master. The book presents a broad survey of Riemenschneider's oeuvre, including representative work from all periods of his career. Contributors explore the sources for his art, his social millieu and the organization of his workshop, the critical reception of his work, his polychrome and monochrome sculpture. Photographs commissioned especially for the book present the great altarpieces in Rothenburg on the Tauber, Creglingen, and Maidbronn as well as the large stone sculpture in Wurzburg. The book is the first publication in English with color reproductions of a significant portion of Riemenschneider's oeuvre.