The role of the sculpted image in German convents at the end of the Middle Ages

The well-known accounts of visions by the Cistercian nun Gertrud of Helfta clearly illustrate the importance of images in the devotional life of women religious. By putting together extant sculptures, often of insufficiently established origin, and a number of biographies from Dominican convents in southwest Germany, such as Adelhausen or Katharinental, one can gain precious historical insight into the use of images. Under Cistercian influence, the nuns sought a personal experience of God's presence: there are many tales of a sister in prayer before the Crucifix hearing exhortations from Christ, and sometimes being embraced by his arm, detached from the cross. This context helps explain why convents possessed sculpted groups of St. John resting his head on Christ : they were probably a means of physically perceiving the position assigned to nuns as spouses of Christ.