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Hispano-Flemish school. Circa 1500.
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Description
Hispano-Flemish school. Circa 1500.
"Pietà"
Carved, polychrome and gilded wooden sculpture.
104 x 97 x 11 cm.
The sculptural representation of Our Lady of Mercy emerged in Germany between the 13th and 14th centuries, being known as “Vesperbild” (evening image). This name refers to the moment when the Virgin received her Son in her arms after he was unnailed and taken down from the Sacred Wood on the evening of Good Friday. This episode is not mentioned in the Canonical Gospels but was a creation of medieval mysticism, popularised through texts such as the Meditations of Pseudo-Bonaventure, the writings of the Dominican Henry Suso, and the Revelations of Saint Bridget of Sweden.
All of these texts mention that the Virgin supported her dead Son on her knees. Suso, in his Minnebüchlein, describes Christ at that moment in this way: "His eyes, which once shone like carbuncles, are now dim. His lips, which seemed like freshly opened red roses, are dry, and his tongue sticks to the roof of his mouth. His bleeding body has been so cruelly stretched on the cross that all his bones can be counted." On the other hand, Saint Bridget states in her account (which she claimed was dictated to her by the Virgin herself): "I received him on my knees like a leper, pale and bruised, because his eyes were lifeless and full of blood, his mouth cold as snow, and his beard stiff like a rope." The first depictions of the Pietà came from convents of mystical nuns in the Rhine Valley, which is logical considering that it is a feminine and maternal theme. Later on, the theme spread to France thanks to the Confraternities of Our Lady of Mercy commissioning sculptural groups to decorate their chapels.
The iconography of the Virgin of Mercy, and therefore the sculpture we present, aims to emphasize the suffering endured by the Virgin Mary and praise her role as co-redeemer of humanity. Thus, the desire to give her greater prominence is evident in the vertical composition of the sculptural group, which facilitates contemplation, as well as in the larger dimensions of her body compared to that of her Son.
The Virgin is depicted sitting on a sloping, rocky surface. Her body, serving as a throne—in painful contrast to medieval images of the Madonna and Child—supports the corpse of her Son, whose head she holds with her right hand, while with her left hand, she raises one of his arms as the other hangs limp between her maternal legs. Jesus' arms are disproportionately long compared to the rest of his body. The Virgin wears a wide tunic with deep, thick, Hispanic-Flemish zigzagging folds, that covers her entire body except for her hands. She wears a white veil over her head that covers most of her hair, with only a few strands escaping on the left side. Her face is oval-shaped, with curved eyebrows, half-closed eyes expressing great pain, a wide pointed nose, closed lips, and a strong chin. On the other hand, the Son's body is arched, supported only by his mother's legs. His legs are parallel, with his feet resting on the rocky surface, while his arms, as we have seen, are spreadeagled, with one hanging limp and the other held by his mother. His body is covered with wounds and bloody traces, especially remarkable is the blood flowing from the wound on his side and also from the crown of thorns, carved into the sculpture itself. His beardless face has angular contours, with a sharp chin and nose, almond-shaped eyes, emaciated cheeks, and an open mouth with individualized teeth. It is the vivid image of a cruel death.
The bodies and attitudes of the Mother and Son contrast somewhat. While Mary is represented with voluminous garments, displaying a serene sadness—her face shows that characteristic ambiguous expression of Hispanic-Flemish masters, which although it shows a pained countenance, appears more like a smile—and with her body at rest. The opposite occurs with her Son. His thin body is covered only by a loincloth, which creates remarkable pathos—he is a true image of the pathos typical of the late Gothic and the Hispanic-Flemish current prevalent in Castile in the late 15th century and the first two decades of the following century—especially visible in his face and the unstable arrangement of his body, with extremely long arms and deformed hands after being unnailed from the cross, with the left hand bending as it touches the ground.
The sculptural group, which is hollowed out from behind, indicating that it was part of a reredos, would have presided over the central niche of the altarpiece. It is a monumental and balanced sculpture that exhibits strong expressionism. Stylistically, it has well-defined features that lead us to consider it to be the work of a late, specifically Hispanic-Flemish, Gothic master who worked in Castile around the year 1500. Its style is quite distinctive due to the great expressiveness of the figures, the patent dramatic intensity in Christ, the use of oval faces, and the characterisation of Christ as a beardless man, a notably unusual feature that tends to be more common in Crucifixes.
We would like to thank Javier Baladrón, doctor in History of Art, for cataloguing this piece.
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Hispano-Flemish school. Circa 1500.
"Pietà"
Carved, polychrome and gilded wooden sculpture.
104 x 97 x 11 cm.
The sculptural representation of Our Lady of Mercy emerged in Germany between the 13th and 14th centuries, being known as “Vesperbild” (evening image). This name refers to the moment when the Virgin received her Son in her arms after he was unnailed and taken down from the Sacred Wood on the evening of Good Friday. This episode is not mentioned in the Canonical Gospels but was a creation of medieval mysticism, popularised through texts such as the Meditations of Pseudo-Bonaventure, the writings of the Dominican Henry Suso, and the Revelations of Saint Bridget of Sweden.
All of these texts mention that the Virgin supported her dead Son on her knees. Suso, in his Minnebüchlein, describes Christ at that moment in this way: "His eyes, which once shone like carbuncles, are now dim. His lips, which seemed like freshly opened red roses, are dry, and his tongue sticks to the roof of his mouth. His bleeding body has been so cruelly stretched on the cross that all his bones can be counted." On the other hand, Saint Bridget states in her account (which she claimed was dictated to her by the Virgin herself): "I received him on my knees like a leper, pale and bruised, because his eyes were lifeless and full of blood, his mouth cold as snow, and his beard stiff like a rope." The first depictions of the Pietà came from convents of mystical nuns in the Rhine Valley, which is logical considering that it is a feminine and maternal theme. Later on, the theme spread to France thanks to the Confraternities of Our Lady of Mercy commissioning sculptural groups to decorate their chapels.
The iconography of the Virgin of Mercy, and therefore the sculpture we present, aims to emphasize the suffering endured by the Virgin Mary and praise her role as co-redeemer of humanity. Thus, the desire to give her greater prominence is evident in the vertical composition of the sculptural group, which facilitates contemplation, as well as in the larger dimensions of her body compared to that of her Son.
The Virgin is depicted sitting on a sloping, rocky surface. Her body, serving as a throne—in painful contrast to medieval images of the Madonna and Child—supports the corpse of her Son, whose head she holds with her right hand, while with her left hand, she raises one of his arms as the other hangs limp between her maternal legs. Jesus' arms are disproportionately long compared to the rest of his body. The Virgin wears a wide tunic with deep, thick, Hispanic-Flemish zigzagging folds, that covers her entire body except for her hands. She wears a white veil over her head that covers most of her hair, with only a few strands escaping on the left side. Her face is oval-shaped, with curved eyebrows, half-closed eyes expressing great pain, a wide pointed nose, closed lips, and a strong chin. On the other hand, the Son's body is arched, supported only by his mother's legs. His legs are parallel, with his feet resting on the rocky surface, while his arms, as we have seen, are spreadeagled, with one hanging limp and the other held by his mother. His body is covered with wounds and bloody traces, especially remarkable is the blood flowing from the wound on his side and also from the crown of thorns, carved into the sculpture itself. His beardless face has angular contours, with a sharp chin and nose, almond-shaped eyes, emaciated cheeks, and an open mouth with individualized teeth. It is the vivid image of a cruel death.
The bodies and attitudes of the Mother and Son contrast somewhat. While Mary is represented with voluminous garments, displaying a serene sadness—her face shows that characteristic ambiguous expression of Hispanic-Flemish masters, which although it shows a pained countenance, appears more like a smile—and with her body at rest. The opposite occurs with her Son. His thin body is covered only by a loincloth, which creates remarkable pathos—he is a true image of the pathos typical of the late Gothic and the Hispanic-Flemish current prevalent in Castile in the late 15th century and the first two decades of the following century—especially visible in his face and the unstable arrangement of his body, with extremely long arms and deformed hands after being unnailed from the cross, with the left hand bending as it touches the ground.
The sculptural group, which is hollowed out from behind, indicating that it was part of a reredos, would have presided over the central niche of the altarpiece. It is a monumental and balanced sculpture that exhibits strong expressionism. Stylistically, it has well-defined features that lead us to consider it to be the work of a late, specifically Hispanic-Flemish, Gothic master who worked in Castile around the year 1500. Its style is quite distinctive due to the great expressiveness of the figures, the patent dramatic intensity in Christ, the use of oval faces, and the characterisation of Christ as a beardless man, a notably unusual feature that tends to be more common in Crucifixes.
We would like to thank Javier Baladrón, doctor in History of Art, for cataloguing this piece.
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