Painting ID:: 63567
St Jerome Penitent in the Wilderness 1496 Engraving, 324 x 228 mm Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York The stone in the saint's right hand serves to strike his chest. In this engraving too Italian influence is manifest. The scenery in the background, however, is based on sketches of quarries in the vicinity of Nuremberg). There is a certain lack of cohesion between the various parts of this unusually large plate. St Jerome, one of the most learned Fathers of the Church and author of the Vulgate, was born in 331 or 342 in Dalmatia of a well-to-do family. He died in 420. He was one of the favourite saints of D?rer's time, but, curiously, Martin Luther was less than fond of him. "I know of no one among the teachers whom I bear as much enmity as St Jerome, for he speaks only of fasting, virginity, etc."Artist:D?RER, Albrecht Title: St Jerome Penitent in the Wilderness Painted in 1501-1550 , German - - graphics : religious new21/Albrecht Durer-844826.jpg
Painting ID:: 63731
St Jerome in the Wilderness 1495 Oil on panel, 23 x 17 cm National Gallery, London St Jerome kneels as a penitent. In his right hand he holds the Bible, which he translated into Latin, and in his left hand the stone which he is using to beat his breast. His eyes stare upwards, beyond the small crucifix stuck into the tree trunk. Wearing a blue gown, his red mantle and cardinal's hat lie beside him on the ground. Behind is his faithful lion, befriended after he had removed a thorn from its paw. In the background is a landscape with dramatic rock formations, probably based on sketches that D?rer had made of the quarries near Nuremberg. The scene is lit by a dramatic evening sky. The reverse of the panel depicts an apocalyptic celestial phenomenon, a red star-like light and a streaking golden disc. Although some scholars have considered it to be an eclipse or meteor, it is almost certainly a comet. D?rer's image is probably derived from woodcuts of comets published in the Nuremberg Chronicle of 1493. A similar object to the one painted by D?rer appears in the sky of his engraving of Melencolia I, made 20 years later. This small panel was only recognized as a D?rer in 1956. Art historian David Carritt realized that the lion is similar to that in a gouache which D?rer painted in Venice in 1494.Artist:D?RER, Albrecht Title: St Jerome in the Wilderness Painted in 1501-1550 , German - - painting : religious new21/Albrecht Durer-694378.jpg
Painting ID:: 63762
Portrait of Philip the Good 1520 Oil on oak panel, 29 x 21 cm Staatliche Museen, Berlin This panel is one of the many copies of a portrait of the duke painted by Rogier van der Weyden probably around 1450, or soon after. The duke, who was just over 50 at the time, wears the chain of the Order of the Golden Fleece, its links representing the flints and steels used to make fire.Artist:WEYDEN, Rogier van der Title: Portrait of Philip the Good Painted in 1401-1450 , Flemish - - painting : portrait new21/WEYDEN, Rogier van der-628252.jpg
Painting ID:: 63843
St Jerome 1598 Oil on canvas Galleria Borghese, Rome In this painting, recent restoration has revealed a lion, sleeping like a large cat in the background; it had been hidden under thick layers of paint that had darkened with age.Artist:BAROCCI, Federico Fiori Title: St Jerome Painted in 1551-1600 , Italian - - painting : religious new21/BAROCCI, Federico Fiori-256397.jpg
Painting ID:: 63846
Surrender of the Burghers of Ghent in . 1454 Illumination on parchment, 20,8 x 14,7 cm ?sterreichische Nationalbibliothek, Vienna The miniature comes from the manuscript Privileges and Statutes of Ghent and Flanders, the artist is referred to as the Master of the Privileges of Ghent and Flanders. Philip the Good had this manuscript written and magnificently illuminated after his decisive victory over the citizens of Ghent. The full-page miniature faithfully depicts the scene described in the text, when the defeated burghers came out to meet Philip wearing only their shirts or a black robe, barefoot and bareheaded, and had to beg for mercy. We can see them surrendering their guild banners, symbols of civic self-determination.Artist:MINIATURIST, Netherlandish Title: Surrender of the Burghers of Ghent in 1453 Painted in 1451-1500 , Flemish - - illumination : historical new21/unknow artist-623479.jpg
Painting ID:: 63847
Story of Alexander the Great 1450-90 Illumination on parchment Biblioth?que Nationale, Paris The picture represents Alexander the Great receiving the mother and wife of the conquered King Darius. The arms and clothes as well as the landscape detailes illustrate contemporary Flanders. The codex was executed by Loyset Ly?det who worked for the Duke of Burgundy. This copy of the manuscript was made for Charles the Bold.Artist:MINIATURIST, Netherlandish Title: Story of Alexander the Great Painted in 1451-1500 , Flemish - - illumination : historical new21/unknow artist-847927.jpg
Painting ID:: 63849
Lady Wearing a Gauze Headdress 1445 Oil on oak panel, 47 x 32 cm Staatliche Museen, Berlin Leaving aside the portraits of the Duke and Duchess of Burgundy (Philip the Good and Isabella of Portugal), which have been preserved only in copies (by anonymous masters, now in Berlin and Malibu), the only extant panel portrait from the period before about 1450 is the Portrait of a Young Woman. The young woman, with her expansive Flemish winged or horned coif of fine linen, through which the forehead remains visible, fills almost the entire panel. The 'nakedness' of the face and the softness of the features form an attractive contrast to the firm outlines of the stiffly folded linen and the dark background. The sitter's hands with beringed fingers are laid firmly on one another and rest on an invisible sill, support being provided visually by the frame. While in his twenties the artist married Elisabeth Goffaerts, a native of Brussels, and it has been generally assumed that she is the subject of the Berlin portrait. Although there is no real foundation for it, this is not an unreasonable assumption; the open, warmhearted expression seems to preclude an official portrait and to suggest someone close to the artist. It was undoubtedly this impression of intimacy created in this portrait - it occurs nowhere else in the painter's work - which seemed to call for some explanation. To portray the subject looking directly at the viewer was something quite new when this painting was executed; in the Netherlands this technique occurs for the first time in van Eyck's portraits. The resemblance to the portrait of a woman by the Master of Fl?malle (now in the National Gallery, London) is worth noting. The artist has modelled his subject with sympathy and sensitivity, while avoiding contact with the observer.Artist:WEYDEN, Rogier van der Title: Lady Wearing a Gauze Headdress Painted in 1401-1450 , Flemish - - painting : portrait new21/WEYDEN, Rogier van der-947667.jpg
Painting ID:: 63854
Portrait of Philip the Good after 1450 Oil on wood, 31 x 23 cm Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna The Duchy of Burgundy had its heyday under Philip the Bold, John the Fearless, Philip the Good and Charles the Bold. Between them, they acquired countless new territories, through a cunning combination of astute marriages, timely purchase and the barely legal diversion of other people's inheritances. Rogier van der Weyden received many commissions from the Court of Burgundy. He excelled in portrait. He was not a realist, he did not seek to capture the particular characteristic of his model, but instead tried to create an ideal image. This approach was very popular with his contemporaries, and brought him considerable success in this genre. He was sought after by the grandest aristocrats and prelates, as well as by the wealthy bourgeoisie, who wanted him to record and embellish their features for posterity. Several writers have drawn attention to Van der Weyden's treatment of his sitter's hands, which he almost always painted joined together, discreetly, so as not to distract from their faces, yet quietly present, always serving to underline their serenity.Artist:WEYDEN, Rogier van der Title: Portrait of Philip the Good Painted in 1401-1450 , Flemish - - painting : portrait new21/WEYDEN, Rogier van der-462245.jpg
Painting ID:: 63856
Portrait of a Man 1455-60 Oil on oak panel, 32 x 22,8 cm Thyssen-Bornemisza Collection, Madrid The man, who is of middle age, has not been identified. The fashion in which his hair is cut corresponds roughly to the style worn by Francesco d'Este (Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York), which would suggest that the two pictures are close in date.Artist:WEYDEN, Rogier van der Title: Portrait of a Man Painted in 1401-1450 , Flemish - - painting : portrait new21/WEYDEN, Rogier van der-575357.jpg
Painting ID:: 63858
The Last Judgment 1446-52 Oil on wood Mus?e de l'H?tel Dieu, Beaune The detail shows a group of the damned. In Van der Weyden's time it was believed that lunatics were possessed by demons. Here, the figures of the damned are tortured and deformed by hatred and their faces distorted by madness. Gripped by a collective hysteria, they are unable to weep, but instead scream and fight, as their folly draws them on towards eternal punishment.Artist:WEYDEN, Rogier van der Title: The Last Judgment (detail) Painted in 1401-1450 , Flemish - - painting : religious new21/WEYDEN, Rogier van der-386822.jpg
Painting ID:: 63859
Diptych 1440 Oil on oak panel, 18,5 x 12 cm (each) Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna The two small panels, representing the Madonna and St Catherine of Alexandria, respectively, probably formed a diptych. The busts of prophets on the outside of the Ghent Altarpiece by Jan van Eyck were the model for the bust of God the Father at the top of the left panel. The figures of Adam and Eve were from the same source. The picture is usually regarded as an early work by Rogier himself from the years 1432-35, but the figure of the Madonna is probably after Jan van Eyck's Madonna of the Fountain, dated 1439, in Antwerp. The right panel is rather weaker, and is not by the same painter as the Madonna. As a king's daughter, Catherine has a crown, but she has taken it off, perhaps a sign of humility and reverence before the Madonna, and has placed it on the ground to lie there ignored. The wheel, her attribute, refers to the failure of the attempt to break her on the wheel; the martyr was finally beheaded with a sword.Artist:WEYDEN, Rogier van der Title: Diptych Painted in 1401-1450 , Flemish - - painting : religious new21/WEYDEN, Rogier van der-442328.jpg
Painting ID:: 63860
Portrait Diptych of Jean de Gros 1450s Oil on oak panel, 36 x 27 cm Mus?e des Beaux-Arts, Tournai Of the Madonnas in the portrait diptychs, the most interesting is the one accompanying the Portrait of Jean de Gros (Art Institute, Chicago). She represents one of the early types of half length figures of the Virgin, which were used in many pictures by Rogier's successors, and copied with what are often only very slight deviations. The head of Mary in particular recurs almost unchanged in many pictures from Rogier's workshop or by his close colleagues, and has come down to us, for instance, in a drawing that was intended as the model for a painting (Mus?e du Louvre, Paris). This panel of the Madonna formed a diptych with the portrait of Jean de Gros; both have the donor's motto and emblem on the back. The painting has suffered from its poor state of preservation, and may perhaps be by a workshop assistant.Artist:WEYDEN, Rogier van der Title: Portrait Diptych of Jean de Gros (left wing) Painted in 1401-1450 , Flemish - - painting : religious new21/WEYDEN, Rogier van der-459839.jpg
Painting ID:: 63861
St John Altarpiece 1455-60 Oil on oak panel, 77 x 48 cm Staatliche Museen, Berlin The left panel depicts the Naming of John the Baptist. Elisabeth lies in bed in the background after giving birth, while the pregnant Mary, the future mother of Jesus, brings the newborn child to his father Zacharias. Zacharias had been struck dumb for his doubts when an angel told him, during service in the temple, that he was to be the father of a son (this scene is shown in the lowest archivolt relief on the left). He therefore has to write down the name of the child. Mary, as the more important saint, is distinguished from Zacharias and Elisabeth by her aureole. The side panels of the St John Altarpiece do not merely show the beginning and end of the Baptist's earthly life. The parallels between the pictorial motifs also express moral conflict. On the left, the chaste Virgin Mary holds the newborn baby in her arms; she and Zacharias are looking at one another gravely, aware of the significance of the event.Artist:WEYDEN, Rogier van der Title: St John Altarpiece (left panel) Painted in 1401-1450 , Flemish - - painting : religious new21/WEYDEN, Rogier van der-329299.jpg
Painting ID:: 63863
Portrait Diptych of Philippe de Croy 1460 Oil on oak panel, 49 x 30 cm Koninklijk Museum voor Schone Kunsten, Antwerp Philippe de Croy's coat of arms surmounted by a helmet is framed, above, by the name of the subject of the portrait, and below by his title "Seigneur de Sempy." He bore this title from around 1452, but resigned it again in 1461. The painting must therefore have been done within that period. On the left, a vertical board in the panel has been renovated.Artist:WEYDEN, Rogier van der Title: Portrait Diptych of Philippe de Croy (reverse side) Painted in 1401-1450 , Flemish - - painting : other new21/WEYDEN, Rogier van der-845537.jpg
Painting ID:: 63864
St Joseph 1445 Oil on oak panel, 21 x 18,3 cm Gulbenkian Foundation, Lisbon This fragment was sawn out of the same large altarpiece as the Mary Magdalene in the National Gallery, London. The aged Joseph stood behind the Magdalene; the lower part of his body can still be seen in the fragment. The exterior of the building in which the scene took place was richly ornamented with Gothic decoration, like a church.Artist:WEYDEN, Rogier van der Title: St Joseph Painted in 1401-1450 , Flemish - - painting : religious new21/WEYDEN, Rogier van der-828365.jpg
Painting ID:: 63865
Lamentation 1441 Wood, 32,2 x 47,2 cm Mus?es Royaux des Beaux-Arts, Brussels The latest studies attribute this Lamentation directly to Rogier van der Weyden, a pupil of the Master of Fl?malle and one of the most important and influential of the Flemish Primitives. The style and pictorial qualities of the painting match those of other Van der Weyden panels that are documented by archival material. A few authors, however, believe this Lamentation to be by his workshop, because of the various versions that exist of this composition, some of which have definitely been produced by assistants. Van der Weyden had so much work that he left the reproduction of popular compositions like the Lamentation to the other painters in his workshop. Dendrochronological research - the dating of a wooden panel based on the growth rings - places this version at around 1441, i.e. relatively early in the painter's career. Depicted is the lamentation of Christ under the cross, a scene that does not appear as such in the Bible. To the left we see John the Evangelist, barefoot and robed in a red mantle. His right hand supports the Saviour's upper body, which is resting against the Virgin's knee. With his left hand he is comforting Mary. The Mother of God supports her Son's limp head and presses her cheek against his. At Christ's feet Mary Magdalen kneels in veneration, alongside her an ointment pot, her customary attribute. The skull in the foreground refers to the location, Golgotha, literally "place of the skull". Apocryphal texts frequently interpret this as the skull of Adam, whose fall brought death on the human race, and whose original sin Christ died to expiate. The withered trees to the left and right are also taken from medieval Passion stories, certain of which tell that all trees withered when the Saviour gave up the spirit. The emotional intensity of the Lamentation witnesses to the influence of 'devotio moderna', with this type of tableau intended to move the viewer to compassion. Closer contemplation of the Passion would then lead to the imitation of Christ, or place the viewer into the right frame of mind to receive communion.Artist:WEYDEN, Rogier van der Title: Lamentation Painted in 1401-1450 , Flemish - - painting : religious new21/WEYDEN, Rogier van der-369476.jpg
Painting ID:: 63866
Portrait of a Young Woman 1440 Silverpoint on prepared paper, 166 x 116 mm British Museum, London The finest of the drawings ascribed to Rogier is the Portrait of a Young Woman. In its freshness of observation and lively expression the drawing comes closest to the painted portrait of another young woman (Staatliche Museen, Berlin), although in contrast to that painting - probably the earliest of the independent portraits by Rogier still extant - the draftsman has modeled the face with much greater plasticity, using light and shade to make shapes like the eyelids appear more rounded and fleshier. This factor in turn links the drawing closely to a portrait of a woman ascribed to the Master of Fl?malle, now in the National Gallery, London, and to the faces in Rogier's earlier Deposition (Prado, Madrid). The strong, bright reflections on the shaded areas of the sitter's throat and cheeks also adopt a method frequently used by Jan van Eyck to heighten the sense of three-dimensionality. By comparison with the chiaroscuro and the powerful three-dimensional style of the drawing, the painted face of the young woman in the portrait appear generally more linear - paradoxically, one might almost say more like a drawing. The draftsman's intention of placing several strong contrasts of light and shade side by side also matches the effects in the Deposition. Like the shaded side of the head of the Virgin, the right-hand side of the portrait drawing shows the alternation of light and very dark areas, and the artist has even shaded the headdress heavily next to the area of reflected light on the sitter's jaw line just below her ear, though this effect is illogical, since if the head-dress is to reflect light it ought to be lit there itself. However, the darkness in the outer area of the drawing, emphasizing the fold at the back of the head-dress, is a genuinely distinctive feature, producing the effect of heavy shadow. There are no such heavy shadows in any painted portrait by Rogier; this pictorial device, creating a sense of space around the figure, first appears in painting around the middle of the century in works by the artist Petrus Christus, who was active in Bruges. Here the draftsman may have created the shadows before drawing the sitter herself, or he may have placed them there to make the back of the headdress retreat into the background - an effect that would also be achieved by the uniform dark ground of a painted portrait. The immediacy of this portrait gives the impression that it was drawn from life. Such an impression is further supported by the fact that only the head and the complicated head-dress are executed in detail, while the upper part of the sitter's body is only lightly indicated; her dress with its patterns of folds could be added later, and leaving it out while the woman herself was being portrayed would have spared her the tedium of sitting for the artist. Such details could easily enough be copied from a painting, but the visible part of the woman's body appears rather awkwardly executed. The right hand on the edge of the picture is particularly jarring, and does not quite connect up anatomically with her shoulder. It is complex in structure, but only half shown, and its clear outline does not make it look like a study from nature. Perhaps the artist completed the lower areas of the portrait later, using a work already in his stock, and experimenting with the composition of his planned painting. All Early Netherlandish portraits were certainly based on drawings from life, for the long process of painting would not have allowed the artist to work from a living model. The Portrait of a Young Woman, outstanding as both a drawing and a portrait, must be one of the very few examples of this genre to have been preserved. Since over and beyond these qualities, the drawing shows similarities with Rogier's painted portraits in its presentation, and with his Deposition in the manner of depicting a head, it could well be by his own hand. It was probably done quite close to the time of the great altarpiece for the Archers of Leuven, while the other (painted) Portrait of a Young Woman must have been executed rather later.Artist:WEYDEN, Rogier van der Title: Portrait of a Young Woman Painted in 1401-1450 , Flemish - - graphics : portrait new21/WEYDEN, Rogier van der-656378.jpg
Painting ID:: 63867
St Catherine 1445 Oil on oak panel, 21,7 x 18,6 cm Gulbenkian Foundation, Lisbon This fragment was sawn out of the same large altarpiece as the Mary Magdalene in the National Gallery, London. The face of the saint, probably painted by an assistant, shows weaknesses in the drawing.Artist:WEYDEN, Rogier van der Title: St Catherine Painted in 1401-1450 , Flemish - - painting : religious new21/WEYDEN, Rogier van der-748694.jpg
Painting ID:: 63868
St Columba Altarpiece 1455 Oil on oak panel Alte Pinakothek, Munich The picture shows a detail of the Presentation in the Temple, the right panel of the altarpiece executed for the St Columba church in Cologne. According to Mosaic law, all firstborn sons had to be presented to God in the temple. When Mary and Joseph carried out this duty, the pious old Simeon recognized the child as the Redeemer whom, according to a prophecy, he was to see before he died. He thanks God with the words, "Lord, now lettest thou they servant depart in peace, according to thy word." The old prophetess Anna, who also recognizes the Christ, is standing behind Simeon. The servant behind Mary is holding two doves for the sacrifice of purification that followed childbirth. Traces of the late Romanesque church of St. Gereon in Cologne seem to have entered into the architecture of the temple on the right wing - the polygonal rotunda, the gallery, and the small buttresses on the outside.Artist:WEYDEN, Rogier van der Title: St Columba Altarpiece (detail) Painted in 1401-1450 , Flemish - - painting : religious new21/WEYDEN, Rogier van der-743877.jpg