Christ, Man of Sorrows, Mocked by a Soldier, frontispiece from The Large Passion
1511
Medium
Woodcut in black on ivory laid paper
Dimensions
28.6 × 19.7 cm (11 5/16 × 7 13/16 in.)
Classification
woodcut
Department
Prints and Drawings
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
19534
Rights
Public Domain
About this artwork
This woodcut was part of Albrecht Dürer’s famous series of 12 prints detailing the Passion of Christ. Published in 1511, the prints illustrated a text by the monk Benedictus Chelidonius. The frontispiece of the series, Christ, Man of Sorrows, Mocked by a Soldier, takes place in a supernatural setting. The frame of clouds around the scene indicates that Christ has already ascended to heaven, but the presence of his five mortal wounds show that he is still affected by earthly sin.
About the Artist
Albrecht Dürer · 1471–1528
Albrecht Dürer (1471–1528) stands as the preeminent figure of the Northern Renaissance and arguably the most influential artist in the history of printmaking. Born in Nuremberg on May 21, 1471, and dying in the same city on April 6, 1528, Dürer revolutionized the status of the artist in Northern Europe, transforming printmaking from a commercial craft into an independent fine art and establishing ...