Artwork Page for Christ as the Man of Sorrows between the Virgin and St. John

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Christ as the Man of Sorrows between the Virgin and St. John

1470–75

Martin Schongauer

(German, c. 1450–1491)
Culture
Germany
Medium
engraving
Credit Line
Dudley P. Allen Fund 1939.67
Catalogue raisonné
Lehrs V.173.34
Public Domain
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Location
Not on view
Print
?

Did You Know?

The Virgin's garment gently intrudes into the space of the viewer, as if to invite the beholder to participate more closely in this scene of compassion.

Description

Prints of the Man of Sorrow were widely widespread in Northern Europe after the mid-15th century. The image portrays Christ naked above the waist, wearing the crown of thorns, and displaying the wounds of the Passion marking his hands and side. The Virgin Mary and Saint John the Evangelist flank Christ and mourn his death. Images like these functioned as devotional tools meant to help the faithful to meditate on the Lord's suffering. By showing Christ's hand over his chest and the Virgin's hand on his side, he focused the viewer's attention on Christ's wounds. Similarly, Saint John's compassionate gaze provides a model of empathy for the beholder.
A vertically oriented print in fine black-inked lines depicts three people with light skin tones clustered behind a stone ledge. In the center, a man wearing a crown of thorns and a radiant halo displays wounded palms. To the left, a woman in a headscarf weeps, while a curly-haired man holding a book stands to the right. Small winged figures hover within an arched frame above them, and a monogram marks the ledge.

Christ as the Man of Sorrows between the Virgin and St. John

1470–75

Martin Schongauer

(German, c. 1450–1491)
Germany

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