Pacifical with Resurrection
Original title: Pacifical with Resurrection
kurzbeschreibung
Where many Resurrection images of the period set Christ alone, rising free of everything around him, Lucas Cranach the Elder draws the Easter event into a crowded gathering of figures and an ornamental frame of blossoms. The undated sheet, titled Pacifical mit Auferstehung, survives in the third of three states (per Hollstein) and belongs to the religious devotional art of the Renaissance.
Description
Christ stands barefoot on a low platform, wearing only a loincloth, both arms raised. People surround him in varied poses: some kneel in prayer, others lift their faces toward him. A church, trees and other landscape elements fill the distance. A border of flowers and scrolling foliage closes off the whole scene. The print stays monochrome, working through strong contrasts between the cut lines and the pale ground.
Context
Lucas Cranach the Elder ranked among the leading masters of the German Renaissance and served as court painter to the Saxon electors in Wittenberg. For the Reformation and for private devotion he produced a great many religious woodcuts. Exactly when this sheet was made is not recorded; stylistically it fits the artist's mature phase.
Impact
Precise linework and a clear layout give the print a collected, solemn mood. The ornamental border draws the eye toward the action at the middle and reinforces the sacred character of the scene. Small as the format is, the woodcut gains spatial depth and visual presence.
Technique
A woodcut in the third of three states (per Hollstein), printed in a single ink. The lines are carefully cut. At 8.5 × 8.3 cm the sheet is small, as was usual for devotional images made for private use.
AI-generated description text
Source: Metropolitan Museum of Art · Public Domain (CC0 1.0)