The Crucifixion

It was Friedländer who established the artistic personality of this anonymous artist working in Delft, and attributed the first group of works to his name. Taking his reference point as the panel of The Virgin and Child with Saints Catherine, Cecilia, Ursula and Barbara in the Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam, Friedländer singled out various works that share the style of this master, who has been seen as an important forerunner of the later Dutch school of painting. Along with Geertgen tot Sint Jans, the present painter, who worked in the last quarter of the 15^th century and who also designed prints, was one of the most important figures working in the northern Low Countries at the end of the 15^th and beginning of the 16^th centuries. His distinctive way of interpreting reality is evident in a series of prints published in Delft between 1483 and 1498 by Jacob van der Meer, Christiaan Snellaert and Eckert van Homburch. The artist’s work also reflects the influence of Hugo van der Goes and Justus of Ghent.

The Master of the Virgo inter Virgenes uses an expressive style in the depiction of the figures, also evident in his approach to other elements used to organise his compositions. The figures in his religious scenes are expressive in a grave, profound manner, while the physical type of the heads is extremely distinctive. Their faces are characterised by an emphasis on broad, bulging foreheads and angular features.

The present Crucifixion is depicted using a high viewpoint. The principal episode is located on the right in order to place most emphasis on the group of riders and soldiers at the foot of the cross, who are located in the foreground of the composition. With a highly developed narrative sense, the artist introduces two further, secondary episodes from the Passion: Mary attended by two holy women and Saint John, and Christ bearing the cross followed by a king and a bishop. Overall, the composition has a dense, crowded feel due to the arrangement of the figures, which are packed into a narrow space. The Master of the Virgo inter Virgines depicts the thieves (with their legs already broken to judge from their position) following the northern iconographic model in which the crosses have no upper vertical section and the thieves’ arms are tied over the horizontal beam. The Good Thief on Christ’s right looks towards the Redeemer while the Bad Thief on his left lowers his head with his face covered with a dense mass of hair. In general, the figures are painted on a smaller scale than in other works by the artist while the figure of Christ is derived from traditional Flemish models that were popularised by the first generation of Flemish painters. Only Longinus can be identified among the knights and soldiers looking at the crucified figures. The painting depicts the moment when Christ’s side is pierced by the lance and Longinus (the elegant young man on horseback) points to Christ with his raised left hand.

Mar Borobia