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Schwanthaler.
Bavarian and Austrian family of sculptors. It is unique in having produced an unbroken sequence of 21 sculptors over 7 generations and more than 250 years from the 17th to the 19th century. At the head of the clan stands Hans Schwanthaler (d 1656), a sculptor in Ried im Innkreis, Bavaria (now Upper Austria). His son (1) Thomas Schwanthaler was one of the most influential and significant members of the family, particularly noted for numerous Baroque wooden altars for churches in Upper Austria. The grandson of Thomas, (2) Johann Peter Schwanthaler I, produced many impressive statues of religious subjects: a number of these display his idiosyncratic version of the Rococo style. Johann Peter’s son (3) Franz Jakob Schwanthaler settled in Munich, where he produced sculpture in the Neo-classical style. Franz Jakob’s son (4) Ludwig von Schwanthaler is the last significant figure of the family. He was court sculptor to Ludwig I of Bavaria and was particularly noted for his massive monumental and architectural sculptures. These four artists between them encapsulate the history of sculpture in German-speaking Europe. The following members have entries:
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