Title

Christ bearing the cross

painter

Flandes, Juan de (Posible procedencia de los Países Bajos, ca. 1465 - Palencia, ca. 1519)

Generic classification

Object

Date

Century

Cultural context / style

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Provenance

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Inventory Number in Current Collection

Object history

Listed as 'As He Carries the Cross' in the 1505 estate sale of Isabella I of Castile’s possessions in Toro, it was acquired along with nine other panels by Francisca Enríquez, Marchioness of Denia. By 1913, it was in the possession of Oskar Berl, who donated it to the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna.

Description

This painting is part of the Polyptych of Isabella I of Castile, which originally comprised forty-seven small panels. It depicts the moment when Christ must carry the cross on the way to Calvary. He wears the crown of thorns on his head and is led to Golgotha by a group of Roman soldiers. On the right, a figure is shown helping Jesus carry the cross: Simon of Cyrene. The Flemish training of Juan de Flandes is evident both in the meticulous detail of the faces and in the landscape.

Locations

• ca. 1505

  municipality

  Toro, Toro (Spain)

• 1913 - present

  museum

  Kunsthistorisches Museum, Viena (Austria)