GENERAL DESCRIPTION
This impressive painting was probably part of a large altarpiece featuring scenes related to the life and death of Jesus Christ. The Descent from the Cross illustrates the immediate aftermath of Christ’s crucifixion, when Joseph of Arimathea, Mary Magdalene, and Nicodemus retrieve Christ’s lifeless body. In the foreground, the Virgin Mary, Christ’s mother, is collapsed in grief and comforted by Saint John. Behind them, Mary Salome raises her hands in distress. In the upper right, the artist depicts the Virgin and Saint John during an earlier moment in the story as they travel to the crucifixion site. In the upper left is a town likely intended to represent Jerusalem.
A master of illusionistic realism, Derick Baegert carefully rendered each protagonist’s face with the precision and individualism of a portrait. His technical virtuosity and attention to the smallest details observed from life, such as the wrinkles in Christ’s skin around Mary Magdalene’s fingertips, heighten the scene’s emotional impact. Baegert’s inclusion of contemporary elements in a biblical narrative is typical of medieval and Renaissance painting. In addition to the 15th-century northern European architecture in the background, the women wear luxurious fabrics and complex headdresses that reflect the latest courtly fashions in northwest Germany. Baegert created the effect of shimmering brocade fabrics by modeling the design in gesso and covering it with eye-catching gold leaf.
Excerpt from
Nicole Myers, DMA label copy, 2018.
NOTES
Created c. 1480-1490
Checked Piction
Catalogue essays
Artist/designers
Baegert, Derick (German, c. 1440-c. 1509)
Cultures
Geography
Depicted location: Golgotha (historic site): TGN: 4002116
Depicted location: Jerusalem (Israel): TGN: 7001371
Place of origin: Rhineland (historical region): TGN: 7003683
Process/materials
Oil on oak panel
Historical periods
Individuals
Jesus Christ
Mary
Joseph of Arimathea
Mary Magdalene
Nicodemus
Saint John
Mary Salome
Subject terms
RELATED OBJECTS
PROVENANCE
AUDIO ASSETS
VIDEO ASSETS
IMAGE ASSETS
WEB RESOURCES
- Dallas Museum of Art~Check out the press release from the DMA's acquisition of Baegert's Descent from the Cross.
- Museo Nacional Thyssen-Bornemisza, Madrid~Read a biography of Derick Baegert.
ARCHIVAL RESOURCES
FUN FACTS
TEACHING IDEAS
RULES
Apply to objects where number equals 2018.14
Category
rules_operator
AND
General Description
This impressive painting was probably part of a large altarpiece featuring scenes related to the life and death of Jesus Christ. The Descent from the Cross illustrates the immediate aftermath of Christ’s crucifixion, when Joseph of Arimathea, Mary Magdalene, and Nicodemus retrieve Christ’s lifeless body. In the foreground, the Virgin Mary, Christ’s mother, is collapsed in grief and comforted by Saint John. Behind them, Mary Salome raises her hands in distress. In the upper right, the artist depicts the Virgin and Saint John during an earlier moment in the story as they travel to the crucifixion site. In the upper left is a town likely intended to represent Jerusalem.
A master of illusionistic realism, Derick Baegert carefully rendered each protagonist’s face with the precision and individualism of a portrait. His technical virtuosity and attention to the smallest details observed from life, such as the wrinkles in Christ’s skin around Mary Magdalene’s fingertips, heighten the scene’s emotional impact. Baegert’s inclusion of contemporary elements in a biblical narrative is typical of medieval and Renaissance painting. In addition to the 15th-century northern European architecture in the background, the women wear luxurious fabrics and complex headdresses that reflect the latest courtly fashions in northwest Germany. Baegert created the effect of shimmering brocade fabrics by modeling the design in gesso and covering it with eye-catching gold leaf.
Excerpt from
Nicole Myers, DMA label copy, 2018.
Fun Facts
Archival Resources
Web Resources
- Dallas Museum of Art~Check out the press release from the DMA's acquisition of Baegert's Descent from the Cross.
- Museo Nacional Thyssen-Bornemisza, Madrid~Read a biography of Derick Baegert.
Notes
Created c. 1480-1490
Checked Piction
Catalogue essays
Artist/designers
Baegert, Derick (German, c. 1440-c. 1509)
Cultures
Geography
Depicted location: Golgotha (historic site): TGN: 4002116
Depicted location: Jerusalem (Israel): TGN: 7001371
Place of origin: Rhineland (historical region): TGN: 7003683
Process/materials
Oil on oak panel
Historical periods
Individuals
Jesus Christ
Mary
Joseph of Arimathea
Mary Magdalene
Nicodemus
Saint John
Mary Salome
Subject terms
RELATED OBJECTS
PROVENANCE
AUDIO ASSETS
VIDEO ASSETS
rules
Apply To
Objects
number
Equals
2018.14
source file
object_notes_2_c-0046.xml.nores