Named for the German painter and watercolor artist Matthias Grünewald (ca 1460–1528). His original name was Mathis Gothard Neithardt (or Niethart). His masterpiece is the Isenheimer altar in Colmar, one of the great works of Western art, featuring spiritual and realistic scenes juxtaposed and notable for the variety and beauty of the colors. Paul Hindemith {see planet  (5157)} made Grünewald’s life the subject of his opera and symphony Mathis der Maler. (M 34354) _ _.