Artwork

Die enthaupteten Hll. Felix, Regula und Exuperantius auf dem Weg zur Grabstätte

Die enthaupteten Hll. Felix, Regula und Exuperantius auf dem Weg zur Grabstätte is an unspecified painting by the Northern Renaissance artist Master of Winkler's Epitaph. It dates from 1496 and is held in the collection of the Kunsthistorisches Museum.

About this work

Overview

Created in 1496, this religious panel by the anonymous Master of Winkler’s Epitaph depicts a procession of five haloed saints moving through a landscape toward a burial site. The work is part of the collection of the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna and exemplifies late‑15th‑century Central European devotional painting.

Subject & Meaning

The central narrative shows the beheaded saints Felix, Regula and Exuperantius accompanied by two additional figures, all bearing golden halos that signal sanctity. One figure on the left clutches a severed head, a visual shorthand for martyrdom that underscores the painting’s focus on sacrifice and the saints’ journey to their final resting place.

Technique & Style

Executed in tempera on panel, the composition employs a muted palette of earth tones—greens, browns and subdued reds—against a worn golden background. The figures are rendered with pale, almost translucent skin, and some rest their hands on their cheeks, a gesture that heightens emotional intensity while maintaining the formal restraint typical of the period.

History & Provenance

The painting, attributed to the Master of Winkler’s Epitaph, entered the Kunsthistorisches Museum’s holdings in the early 20th century, though its earlier ownership remains undocumented. Its survival in relatively good condition allows scholars to study the iconographic conventions of late medieval Central European art.