Austria, Styria, 15th century / c. 1400
Diptych with the Passion of Christ
The Cleveland Museum of Art catalogs Diptych with the Passion of Christ as painting (Austria, Styria, 15th century · c. 1400).
This painting was probably not originally a diptych but part of a larger ensemble.
A CLOSER LOOK
The museum identifies this painting as tempera and gold on wood oak.
The museum's collection notes: This diptych, or two-panel painting, is hinged at the center so that it could be opened and closed and easily transported. It was clearly designed as an object for private devotion. The owner would have been able to contemplate the Passion of Christ and pray before these scenes. The top two images depict Christ’s scourging at the pillar and the crowning of thorns, while the lower two show Jesus before Pontius Pilate and in the Garden of Gethsemane. The scenes would have been read clockwise beginning with the lower right. On the back of these panels are remnants of paintings that have since been scraped off.
FOLLOW THE EVIDENCE
The Cleveland Museum of ArtDiptych with the Passion of ChristOriginal explanation based on the sources above. Images carry their own reuse terms.