Christ and the Woman Taken in Adultery

c. 1500/1599

Netherlandish 16th Century

Associated Names
Netherlandish 16th Century

Artist

This is a painting depicting multiple figures in elaborate dress within an interior setting rich with symbolism. The composition is segmented into three sections, each showing different narrative moments featuring figures in robes and ornamented garments. The scene includes books and scrolls suggesting themes of wisdom and learning, with intricate patterns of fabric and decorative architecture framing the vignettes. Motifs such as a bull and an eagle can be seen resting at the feet of the seated figures on either side of the central panel. The color palette includes muted earth tones, vibrant reds, and blues, adding depth and richness. The tapestry is framed with a border of floral designs, enhancing its elegance and symmetry. It is executed in the style of medieval European tapestry art.

Media Options

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Artwork overview

  • Medium

    tapestry: undyed wool warp; dyed wool, silk, and silver-gilt- and silver-wrapped silk weft

  • Credit Line

    Widener Collection

  • Dimensions

    overall: 255.3 x 334.3 cm (100 1/2 x 131 5/8 in.)

  • Accession Number

    1942.9.445

Artwork history & notes

Provenance

Mathieu-Paul-August-Maurice Chabrières-Arlés [1829-1897], Lyon. Baron Leopold Hirsch, London. (Duveen Brothers, Inc., London, New York, and Paris), by 1918.[1] Inheritance from the Estate of Peter A.B. Widener by gift through power of appointment of Joseph E. Widener, Elkins Park, Pennsylvania;[2] gift 1942 to NGA.
[1] The tapestry was lent by Duveen Brothers to an exhibition in Cleveland in 1918.
[2] The tapestry was In the Widener collection by 1925, when it was published by George Leland Hunter, The Practical Book of Tapestries, Philadelphia and London, 1925: 23+.

Associated Names

Exhibition History

1918

  • Loan Exhibition of Tapestries, The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1918, no. 1.

Bibliography

1935

  • Inventory of the Objects d'Art at Lynnewood Hall, Elkins Park, Pennsylvania, The Estate of the Late P.A.B. Widener. Philadelphia, 1935: 119.

1942

  • Works of Art from the Widener Collection. Foreword by David Finley and John Walker. National Gallery of Art, Washington, 1942: 19, as Flemish 16th Century.

1982

  • Abrams, Richard I. and Warner A. Hutchinson. An Illustrated Life of Jesus, From the National Gallery of Art Collection. Nashville, 1982: 72-73, color repro.

Inscriptions

at the center, on the stone base-beam above the lower border: mittat labe care's ut eä primit'saxa (mittat labe care[n]s ut ea[m] primit[us] saxa; He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her [John, 8:7]); on the decorative hem of the tunic of the man holding a stone on the left in the center compartment: I*ANO [and] NL'

Wikidata ID

Q62268431

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