The Crucifixion
There have been many good paintings of the events surrounding the crucifixion, and I
have some of them here. But in my opinion, the best paintings ever done on this
subject are those by Peter Paul Rubens, so I am going to give him his own page.
First, though, back to the story. A weakened Jesus bore His cross out of the city
(and actually had to be helped to carry it) until He came to Golgotha, the Place of the
Skull, where criminals were executed. What follows are two paintings by El Greco,
one of Christ carrying the cross, and the other entitled The Disrobing of Christ (notice
the man in the lower right drilling some holes in the cross in preparation for the nailing
of the hands).
What follows are two paintings of Christ on the cross by El Greco (I wish I could find
the second one in color--it looks magnificent).
Here is Christ on the Cross by Velazquez.
Here are two paintings of Christ being taken down from the cross after He had died--both by
Rembrandt, the great Baroque painter.
And here is a painting of the entombment of Christ by Caravaggio.
All of the above paintings are by Baroque artists. If you would like to see the
works on these subjects by the greatest of the Baroque painters, click here on his name.
Rubens
The events from the trial of Jesus to His entombment are traditionally celebrated in
what are called "the stations of the cross." These 14 stations (events)
are often found around the interiors of Roman Catholic churches, and the devout pray at
each of these stations. Some modern artists have painted the stations, and have, I
think, captured the horror and emotion of the events as well and even better than the
great artists. If you would like to see some of this work, click on the following
word.
Stations
If you would like to go on and see the triumphal ending of the story, click on the
following picture of the Pieta by Michelangelo, the great Renaissance artist.
If you prefer to return to the beginning page, click the alpha
and omega.
