GENERAL DESCRIPTION
Under the crumbling gate of hell, Jesus, crowned with light and dressed in sweeping robes, pulls up the condemned and grants them salvation. This apocryphal, or non-canonical, scene describes the events that occurred between Jesus’s crucifixion and resurrection. Adam and Eve, who exchange touching glances, are seen under the archway with Moses shown behind them. These three Old Testament figures were among those guided into heaven by Jesus.
To capture the terrors of hell, Albrecht Dürer incorporated two monsters: a wingless dragon climbing over the archway and pointing a menacing spear at Adam, and another emerging from behind the broken-down door. The threatening spikes, claws, teeth, and spear of the monsters are all prominently featured and are meant to instill fear into viewers; it is because of these kinds of details that Dürer became regarded as a master of the print medium.
Adapted from
- Laura Sevelis, DMA label copy, March 2015.
- Carl Wuellner, DMA label copy, December 2003.
NOTES
Series- The Engraved Passion, 1507-1512, published 1512, created in Nuremberg
General Description: Sevelis from Saints and Monsters: Prints by Albrecht Dürer, Wuellner from Black Lines Only: Engravings and Woodcuts by Albrecht Dürer
Create term defined- Cerebus?
Depicted Individuals- Adam and Eve
Added Saints and Monsters label copy to TMS as a text entry.
Changed the object name from Print to Engraving. Changed the medium from Engraving to ink on paper.
Add information to existing TMS label copy by Wuellner. The texts were written for "With Black Lines Only: Engravings and Woodcuts by Albrecht Dürer" (December 21, 2003- March 28, 2004).
Deleted the text in the exhibition history field for "With Black Lines Only" because it was duplicated by an exhibition record already entered in TMS and related to this object.
DMA Friends Activity- puzzle brochures by Danielle Shulz and Tanya Miller for the Saints and Monsters exhibition- Fall 2015
HOW TO FIND THIS?
Alternate title- Christ in Limbo
Alternate title- Christ Descending into Hell
Provenance (not public)
From 1991: Dallas Museum of Art, anonymous gift
Cultures
Geography
Place of origin: Nuremberg (Germany): TGN: 7004334
Process/materials
Historical periods
Individuals
Jesus Christ
Adam
Eve
Moses (behind Adam and Eve)
St. John the Baptist (Christ is reaching for him)
Subject terms
hell
underworld
gateway
mythical beings
Christianity
arch
monogram
staff
souls
flame
drapery
robes
nude
spears
Latin cross
fur
banner
beards
halos
fear
salvation
dragon
teeth
RELATED OBJECTS
PROVENANCE
AUDIO ASSETS
Josh Rose, Saints and Monsters: Prints by Albrecht Durer, gallery talk, June 17, 2015.
248141244: UMO
Connection made by confirming exhibition in TMS and Piction ID correct.
VIDEO ASSETS
IMAGE ASSETS
WEB RESOURCES
- Inside Albrecht Dürer's Studio- Engraving~Watch this demonstration and explanation of the engraving process created by the Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute for the exhibition, The Strange World of Albrecht Dürer (November 14, 2010- March 13, 2011).
ARCHIVAL RESOURCES
FUN FACTS
- Greek mythology also describes a vicious guardian of the gates to the underworld, Cerberus. In Greek art and later classicist imagery, Cerberus appears as a multi-headed dog with snakes protruding from his body.
TEACHING IDEAS
RULES
Apply to objects where number equals 1991.48
Category
rules_operator
AND
General Description
Under the crumbling gate of hell, Jesus, crowned with light and dressed in sweeping robes, pulls up the condemned and grants them salvation. This apocryphal, or non-canonical, scene describes the events that occurred between Jesus’s crucifixion and resurrection. Adam and Eve, who exchange touching glances, are seen under the archway with Moses shown behind them. These three Old Testament figures were among those guided into heaven by Jesus.
To capture the terrors of hell, Albrecht Dürer incorporated two monsters: a wingless dragon climbing over the archway and pointing a menacing spear at Adam, and another emerging from behind the broken-down door. The threatening spikes, claws, teeth, and spear of the monsters are all prominently featured and are meant to instill fear into viewers; it is because of these kinds of details that Dürer became regarded as a master of the print medium.
Adapted from
- Laura Sevelis, DMA label copy, March 2015.
- Carl Wuellner, DMA label copy, December 2003.
Fun Facts
- Greek mythology also describes a vicious guardian of the gates to the underworld, Cerberus. In Greek art and later classicist imagery, Cerberus appears as a multi-headed dog with snakes protruding from his body.
Archival Resources
Web Resources
- Inside Albrecht Dürer's Studio- Engraving~Watch this demonstration and explanation of the engraving process created by the Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute for the exhibition, The Strange World of Albrecht Dürer (November 14, 2010- March 13, 2011).
Notes
Series- The Engraved Passion, 1507-1512, published 1512, created in Nuremberg
General Description: Sevelis from Saints and Monsters: Prints by Albrecht Dürer, Wuellner from Black Lines Only: Engravings and Woodcuts by Albrecht Dürer
Create term defined- Cerebus?
Depicted Individuals- Adam and Eve
Added Saints and Monsters label copy to TMS as a text entry.
Changed the object name from Print to Engraving. Changed the medium from Engraving to ink on paper.
Add information to existing TMS label copy by Wuellner. The texts were written for "With Black Lines Only: Engravings and Woodcuts by Albrecht Dürer" (December 21, 2003- March 28, 2004).
Deleted the text in the exhibition history field for "With Black Lines Only" because it was duplicated by an exhibition record already entered in TMS and related to this object.
DMA Friends Activity- puzzle brochures by Danielle Shulz and Tanya Miller for the Saints and Monsters exhibition- Fall 2015
HOW TO FIND THIS?
Alternate title- Christ in Limbo
Alternate title- Christ Descending into Hell
Provenance (not public)
From 1991: Dallas Museum of Art, anonymous gift
Cultures
Geography
Place of origin: Nuremberg (Germany): TGN: 7004334
Process/materials
Historical periods
Individuals
Jesus Christ
Adam
Eve
Moses (behind Adam and Eve)
St. John the Baptist (Christ is reaching for him)
Subject terms
hell
underworld
gateway
mythical beings
Christianity
arch
monogram
staff
souls
flame
drapery
robes
nude
spears
Latin cross
fur
banner
beards
halos
fear
salvation
dragon
teeth
RELATED OBJECTS
PROVENANCE
AUDIO ASSETS
Josh Rose, Saints and Monsters: Prints by Albrecht Durer, gallery talk, June 17, 2015.
248141244: UMO
Connection made by confirming exhibition in TMS and Piction ID correct.
VIDEO ASSETS
rules
Apply To
Objects
number
Equals
1991.48
source file
object_notes_2_c-0144.xml.nores