Flanders / c. 1620
The Trinity
The Trinity
The Cleveland Museum of Art catalogs The Trinity as painting (Flanders · c. 1620).
WHY IT’S INTERESTING
The crown worn by God in this painting resembles a papal tiara, last used by a Catholic pope in 1964.
A CLOSER LOOK
The museum identifies this painting as oil on wood and credits Hendrik van Balen (Flemish, 1575–1632).
The museum's collection notes: This vividly colored altarpiece was made in Antwerp, the center of religious learning in Catholic Flanders. In the mid-1500s when the Catholic Church mounted a defense against the spread of Protestant reforms, known as the Counter-Reformation, it encouraged the production of religious images that promoted Catholic doctrine, offering opportunities for artists like Rubens, Van Dyck, and Van Balen. Van Balen’s painting depicts the traditional theme of the Trinity, with God the Father holding the dead Christ and the dove of the Holy Spirit hovering above. Unusually, God wears the purple papal tiara, intended to emphasize the pope’s role as God’s
FOLLOW THE EVIDENCE
The Cleveland Museum of ArtThe TrinityOriginal explanation based on the sources above. Images carry their own reuse terms.