BENDL, Ehregott Bernhard - b. ~1660 Pfarrkirchen, d. 1738 Augsburg

Ehregott Bernhard Bendl (also Pendl), German sculptor. He was trained initially by his father until 1678. He spent his years on the road as a journeyman (Prague, Vienna, Rome, and Paris). The sculptor Johann Georg Bendl worked in Prague and the sculptor Ignaz Innocent Bendl in Vienna. It is presumed that he was related to both, and was educated in their studios.

He settled in Augsburg and from 1684 to 1687 he was employed in the workshop of Johann Jakob Rills. In 1687 he acquired master status in the guild. From then on Bendl was one of the leading sculptors in Augsburg. His work in all the major sculptural media (wood, stone, ore, ivory, gold, silver) of notable quality.

St John the Evangelist

This figure belongs to a group of six massive statues, comprising the four evangelists, St Paul, and the figure of the Saviour, which were erected in St George’s in Augsburg. With his head raised in visionary pose, the evangelist is portrayed at the moment of divine inspiration. In his left hand he holds the open book with the opening words “In principio erat verbum” (In the beginning was the Word).