Johann Joseph Würth


Johann Joseph Würth, also known as Jan Josef Würth was an Austrian silversmith of the late baroque period. He is best known for the silver tomb with statues on the grave of John of Nepomuk in Prague.

Life

Coming from a famous family of silversmiths, he was able to enter the Viennese guild of goldsmiths, silversmiths and jewellers as a master in 1726, without practice. He worked above all on ecclesiastic silver, such as monstrances, chalices or mass trays, often decorated with precious stones.
His master work was the silver tomb with statues on the grave of Saint John of Nepomuk in St. Vitus Cathedral in Prague Castle.
He hammered out the silver using wooden models by Italian sculptor Antonio Corradini. It took him two years, his helpers were Georg Rafael Donner and. The three all worked together in Prague on the tomb, because moving such a large work in wood would be too expensive. The resulting piece on St John's grave is the largest ecclesiastic silverwork in Central Europe that surviving the Napoleonic wars.
Later he worked for the pilgrimage church of the Virgin Mary in Mariazell, Styria, and erected there a silver altar, and bulkhead with grille. Between 1751 - 1754 he was elected the first chairman of the Viennese guild and later senior guild master.

Work