Christ on the Cross

c. 1500

German 15th Century

Associated Names
German 15th Century

Artist

The image shows three figures in a religious scene. The central figure is attached to a cross, with arms spread out horizontally. He has a beard and long hair, with a crown of thorns placed on his head. His facial expression is solemn with his head slightly tilted to the side. He is clothed in a simple drape around his waist, and there is a halo behind his head. On either side of him are two other figures. The figure on the left is draped in a blue robe and holding a book, with a halo visible. The figure on the right is dressed in robes of green and brown, has curly hair, and also a halo. This person is holding a book and looking up at the central figure. Skulls and rocks can be seen at the base of the cross. The background consists of a blank surface with a suggestion of simple rounded hills behind the figures.

Media Options

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Artwork overview

  • Medium

    woodcut with hand-coloring in blue, green, brown, tan, ocher, olive, and pale blue with gold leaf on laid paper

  • Credit Line

    Rosenwald Collection

  • Accession Number

    1943.3.479

  • Catalogue Raisonné

    Schreiber, no. 392

Artwork history & notes

Provenance

Martin Aufhäuser [1875-1944], Munich, Holland, and Los Angeles; [1] purchased 19 August 1939 by Lessing J. Rosenwald, Jenkintown, PA (L1760c and L1932d); gift to NGA, 1943.
[1] For complete information on Aufhäuser's collection, see Rosenwald Papers, box 9, and Richard S. Field, Fifteenth Century Woodcuts and Metalcuts, Washington, D.C., 1965, Preface (np).

Associated Names

Exhibition History

1965

  • Fifteenth-Century Woodcuts and Metalcuts from the Collection of the National Gallery of Art, NGA, 1965-1966, no. 56, repro.

  • Selected 15th Century Prints from the Lessing J. Rosenwald Collection, National Gallery of Art, Pennsylvania State University, State College, PA, 1965, no. 32.

Bibliography

1926

  • Schreiber, Wilhelm Ludwig. Handbuch de Holz- und Metailschnitte des XV Jahrhunderts. 8 vols. Leipzig: Verlag Karl W. Hierseman, 1926-1930.

1965

  • Field, Richard S. Fifteenth Century Woodcuts and Metalcuts from the National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.. Exh. cat. Washington: National Gallery of Art, 1965: no. 56.

Watermarks

to identify

Wikidata ID

Q64952913

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