Descent from the Cross

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Descent from the Cross: Peter Paul Rubens

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Peter Paul Rubens Oil Painting - Descent from the Cross

Keywords: Descent, Cross

Work Overview: The Descent from the Cross
Artist Peter Paul Rubens
Year 1612–1614
Medium Oil on panel
Dimensions 421 x 311 cm (centre panel), 421 x 153 cm (wings)
Style Baroque
Genre religious painting
Location Cathedral of Our Lady, Antwerp

The Descent from the Cross is the central panel of a triptych painting by Peter Paul Rubens in 1612–1614. It is still in its original place, the Cathedral of Our Lady, Antwerp, Belgium, along with another great altarpiece The Elevation of the Cross. The subject was one Rubens returned to again and again in his career. This particular work was commissioned on September 7, 1611, by the Confraternity of the Arquebusiers, whose Patron Saint was St. Christopher.

The triptych describes the Visitation, the Descent from the Cross, and the Presentation of Jesus at the Temple.

Although essentially Baroque, the oil on panel piece is rooted in the Venetian tradition, and likely influenced by the work of Daniele da Volterra, Federico Barocci and Cigoli, amongst others.[1] In its composition and use of light, the triptych recalls Caravaggio's Roman period.

Theophile Silvestre wrote, in his "On Rubens' Descent from the Cross - 1868":

“The principal subject is composed of nine figures: at the top of two ladders, workers are lowering the body of Christ with the aid of a shroud which one of them holds in his teeth, the other in the left hand. Bracing themselves firmly against the arms of the cross, each bends forward to guide the Christ with the hand that is left free while St. John, with one foot on the ladder and his back arched, supports him most energetically. One of Savior’s feet comes to rest on the beautiful shoulder of the Magdalene, grazing her golden hair. Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus, placed midway on ladders so as to face each other, form, together with the two workmen in the upper part of the picture, a square of vigorous but plebeian figures. The Virgin, standing at the foot of the sacrificial tree, extends her arms towards her Son; Salome (properly, Mary Cleophas), kneeling, gathers up her robe. On the ground are seen the superscription and a copper basin where the crown of thorns and the nails of the Crucifixion lie in the congealed blood. The crowd, always elated by the spectacle of torture, has departed from Golgotha as daylight fades. After the sacrifice of Calvary, as it is called in Scripture, the sad, dark sky is crossed by a light that illumines the shoulders of the workmen, whose bold posture recalls the composition by Daniele da Volterra".

In 1794, Napoleon removed this painting and The Elevation of the Cross and sent them to the Louvre. After his defeat, they were returned to the cathedral in 1815.

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ogether with the Italian artist Caravaggio (1571-1610), Peter Paul Rubens was one of the leading figures in Baroque painting, and an important contributor to Catholic Counter-Reformation art following the Council of Trent. Both painters expressed the melodrama and mystery underlying Catholic dogma, and both were experts at chiaroscuro and the modelling of forms, but while Caravaggio is noted for the unvarnished naturalism of his subjects, Rubens uses a more conventional, idealistic idiom. Masterpieces by Rubens include: Samson and Delilah (1609, National Gallery, London); The Rape of the Daughters of Leucippus (1618); Minerva Protects Pax from Mars (1629-30, National Gallery, London); and Judgement of Paris (1632-5, National Gallery, London).

Following Luther's protest in 1517 and the ensuing spread of Protestantism throughout the Low Countries, Antwerp switched from Catholicism to Calvinism and - in keeping with Calvinist principles - banned all religious paintings from its churches. But in 1585, after Duke Alessandro Farnese (1545-92) reimposed Spanish (Catholic) rule over the city, Antwerp's churches became decorated once again with works of religious art.

The Descent from the Cross by Rubens is the centre-panel of a triptych which he painted for the Cathedral of our Lady, in Antwerp. It was the second altarpiece to be completed by the artist for the Cathedral; the first being The Elevation of the Cross (1610–11). He also painted two other famous Descents: one in 1617, which now hangs in the Palais des Beaux-Arts in Lille, and one in 1618 which is now in the Hermitage Museum, St Petersburg. In addition, he produced The Deposition (1602, Galleria Borghese) - another smaller and less well known work - which was formerly attributed to his pupil Anthony Van Dyck (1599-1641).

In 1611, Antwerp's Guild of Musketeers led by Nicolaas Rockox (1560-1640), a close friend of Rubens, commissioned the artist to paint a triptych for their cathedral. Because the Guild's patron saint was St. Christopher (whose name means 'Christ-bearer'), it was agreed that the iconography of the triptych should feature The Descent from the Cross (centre-panel), flanked by The Visitation (left-panel), and The Presentation in the Temple (right-panel) - all involving scenes in which Christ is carried or supported.

Rubens started on the commission following his return from an extended visit to Italy, where he was able to study Venetian altarpieces - and the new style of Caravaggism, at first hand. In addition, he studied the muscular and anatomical forms of Renaissance sculpture, along with exceptional Mannerist statues like Rape of the Sabine Women (1583) by Giambologna, and the painting of Federico Barocci (1526-1612) that so gracefully combines the influence of Raphael, Correggio and Titian. The Descent from the Cross is full of the techniques and devices that he absorbed during his Italian visit. Indeed, a lot of Rubens' Baroque art is indebted to Venetian painting and to the tenebrism of Caravaggio, although invariably it carries the stamp of Flemish painting.

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After the termination of the Calvinist regime in Antwerp in 1585, the city's churches were gradually decorated once again with works of art. The process continued and intensified in the early part of the 17th century, when the Southern Netherlands enjoyed a period of stability and prosperity thanks to the peace policies pursued by the Archdukes Albert and Isabella. Art and artists were major beneficiaries. Antwerp was a wealthy city, whose churches were decorated with unusual splendour: Catholic worship had to be especially glorious in this place where the Protestants head recently held sway.

In 1611, the Arquebusiers - Antwerp's civic guard - commissioned a Descent from the Cross by their illustrious townsman Rubens for their altar in the cathedral. The dean of the guild at that time was Burgomaster Nicolaas Rockox, who appear in the painting. The Descent from the Cross is the second of Rubens's great altarpieces for the Antwerp Cathedral. It shows the Visitation, and the Presentation of the Temple on either side of the Descent from the Cross. (The first triptych of the Raising of the Cross was executed in 1611-12.) His rich painterly Baroque technique incorporated both elements of Venetian design and also the composition and lighting of the Roman period of Caravaggio. But the result is purely Flemish.

Although at first sight the themes presented in the triptych seem extremely wide-ranging, they are actually linked, for St Christopher was the Arquebusiers' patron saint. When the triptych was closed, all that worshippers could see was this scene from the legend of St Christopher, whose Greek name 'Christophorus' means 'Christ-bearer'. This fact forms the key to the entire painting, in which the friends and holy women in the centre panel, and Mary and Simeon in the wings are also 'Christ-bearers'.

After the termination of the Calvinist regime in Antwerp in 1585, the city's churches were gradually decorated once again with works of art. The process continued and intensified in the early part of the 17th century, when the Southern Netherlands enjoyed a period of stability and prosperity thanks to the peace policies pursued by the Archdukes Albert and Isabella. Art and artists were major beneficiaries. Antwerp was a wealthy city, whose churches were decorated with unusual splendour: Catholic worship had to be especially glorious in this place where the Protestants head recently held sway.

In 1611, the Arquebusiers - Antwerp's civic guard - commissioned a Descent from the Cross by their illustrious townsman Rubens for their altar in the cathedral. The dean of the guild at that time was Burgomaster Nicolaas Rockox, who appear in the painting. The Descent from the Cross is the second of Rubens's great altarpieces for the Antwerp Cathedral. It shows the Visitation, and the Presentation of the Temple on either side of the Descent from the Cross. (The first triptych of the Raising of the Cross was executed in 1611-12.) His rich painterly Baroque technique incorporated both elements of Venetian design and also the composition and lighting of the Roman period of Caravaggio. But the result is purely Flemish.

Although at first sight the themes presented in the triptych seem extremely wide-ranging, they are actually linked, for St Christopher was the Arquebusiers' patron saint. When the triptych was closed, all that worshippers could see was this scene from the legend of St Christopher, whose Greek name 'Christophorus' means 'Christ-bearer'. This fact forms the key to the entire painting, in which the friends and holy women in the centre panel, and Mary and Simeon in the wings are also 'Christ-bearers'.

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The Descent from the Cross by Peter Paul Rubens is a stunningly powerful depiction showing the body of Jesus being removed from the cross after his crucifixion – a theme that Rubens returned to repeatedly in his brilliant career.

The painting is the center piece of a triptych. The first panel shows a pregnant Mary visiting her cousin Elizabeth, and the latter panel shows a baby Jesus being presented in the Temple.

But the central panel, The Descent from the Cross, is typical Rubens power. There are eight figures in the scene along with the spent figure of Jesus – who is ghastly ashen-white and bloody. He is being tenderly removed with the aid of workmen on two ladders, and a blonde Mary Magdalene below, whose shoulder is serving as a brace for the foot of Jesus.

Behind Mary Magdalene is Mary Cleophas adorned in purple, and above her is the Virgin Mary, dressed more simply in purple. The mother of Jesus is extending her arms in grief toward her fallen son.

Also represented in the painting is the uncle of Jesus, Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus. They are positioned opposite of each other midway up ladders on either side of Jesus. To the right of Mary Magdalene on the ground, but with one foot on the ladder, is St. John, who is arrayed in bright red robes.

The white body of Jesus and his white shroud, along with the red of St. John’s clothing, provide a vivid contrast with surroundings that are generally rendered in darker colors. The sky is dark, brooding and ominous.

Rubens completed this triptych between 1612 and 1614. It was commissioned as an altarpiece for the Cathedral of Our Lady in Antwerp, Belgium. This is an oil-on-panel creation, and although the style is considered Baroque, it is clearly influenced by the Venetian school.

The Descent from the Cross still graces the Cathedral of Our Lady in Antwerp today, and would have to be considered to be among the world’s most priceless masterpieces.

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One thousand years after the famous convention in Gniezno which definitively affirmed the place of Poland in the Christian Europe, during the special period marked by Lent of the Jubilee Year, the National Museum in Warsaw organised an exhibition which presented the iconography of the Passion of Christ based on chosen examples of Northern European works of art, prints and paintings from its own collections as well as from the Hermitage. The generous loan from the St. Petersburg collections constituted the highlight of the exhibition.

The deliberate restraint of the presentation was determined by the very nature of its theme – its solemnity as well as its theological, religious and emotional import, and also the artistic significance of the works on display. The selection of two artistic media, painting and engraving, set the stage for consideration of two different ways in which the faithful experienced the Passion in art. On the one hand, the smaller forms of the prints, above all the narrative cycles of the historia passionis, recounting the Martyrdom in a more immediate and intimate fashion, refer to their original function, that of individual reflection and prayer. On the other hand, art works such as the central element of the exhibition, The Descent from the Cross from St. Petersburg, and the accompanying paintings from the National Museum in Warsaw recall the manner of experiencing the profound messages of works of art which was typical for the persuasive art of the Baroque. The vast altar paintings, created with psychological verity, inspired contemplation of the mysteries of the faith in a community, among large groups of the faithful gathered in big churches.

A rich tradition of presenting the History of the Redemption, and the Passion of Christ in particular, important in the whole of Christian Europe, found a magnificent expression in all artistic disciplines for centuries. Out of innumerable representations of this theme, which invariably inspired artists and always offered the most comprehensive characteristics of the artistic, emotional and intellectual character of each epoch, a comparatively small fragment of the history of art was chosen and bridged by two great personalities: Albrecht Dürer and Peter Paul Rubens. Some one hundred years before Rubens painted the masterwork exhibited here, Dürer one of the greatest print-makers of all time, had visited Antwerp where he had been given a hearty welcome by the artists of the city and honoured by them. Dürer’s influence in the Netherlands was equal to that in his homeland, and those inspirations were documented in numerous examples of paintings and prints in the exhibition.

The phenomenon of the Antwerp Baroque was preceded by a presentation of some aspects of the Passion iconography. Engraved Passion series were shown alongside individual prints on this subject, created between the early 16th and the late 17th centuries, as well as a selection of paintings which exemplified the influences and artistic affiliations between the two branches of art.

During the 16th and 17th centuries, prints with Passion images had, by reflecting many aspects of theological debates carried on at that time, contributed appreciably to the process of shaping iconographic formulations which, due to the technical possibilities of the medium, were then spread on a large scale. This was a time of great artistic personalities who chose printmaking as their means of expression developing this medium as a whole, perfecting its technique and increasing its potential of expression.

The growing presence of Passion themes in religious art was related to the traditional piety in secular circles, most significantly influenced in the 12th and 13th centuries by the Franciscans who, by referring to the emotions, shaped a type of religiousness close to the widest circles of believers. The lives of the Saviour and the Mother of Christ, and the History of Passion in particular, by stressing the emotional aspects, bringing out human suffering and anguish, patience and humility in the fulfilment of the Sacrifice of the Redemption, showing the Son of God’s love for people, made them feel compassion, repentance for their sins, and moved them to improve their behaviour. The development of this kind of piety was accompanied by literature; the historia passionis soon became the most popular form, presenting the events of the Passion in a narrative way and often combining it with an allegorical or moral interpretation rooted in the Biblical exegesis. The success of this form was also contributed to by the fact that the Passion cycles, especially the Via Crucis, were traditionally regarded as an opportunity for a “spiritual pilgrimage” to the places sanctified by Christ’s blood.

Of inestimable importance was the role of Albrecht Dürer a great creative personality and one of the finest engravers of all time whose genius elevated the graphic medium into the highest realms of art. Dürer’s works were intellectually rich, artistically innovative, and technically perfect. Among them was the Little Passion cycle (cat nos 12-48) which owes its name to the format of the wood blocs. It shows the history of the Redemption from the Original Sin, “constituting the reason of Redemption work undertaken by Christ”, to the Last Judgement. This “visual prayer book” with devotional pictures, didactic in spirit and intended as an aid in the reflection and contemplation of the Martyrdom, had, on account of its extraordinary suggestiveness and the power of its artistic vision rendered with a technical mastery, a great importance in building the imagery of the Passion of Christ, profoundly affecting viewers and artists alike. Due to the preservation of clarity in the small format, the artist reduced the number of figures and relegated the background to a minor importance; thus, he was able to achieve an effect of directness and close contact and to concentrate on the narrative and human dimensions of the Passion. The Little Passion cycle, preserved in its complete form, was among the most important works shown in the exhibition.

Apart from the cycles, individual prints with the Passion scenes were also popular, depicting above all the Crucifixion, the Prayer at Gethsemane (Christ on the Mount of Olives) and the Carrying of the Cross. Woodcuts used to be the most readily available works of art because of their lower price (associated with the fact that this technique was suited for producing a greater number of impressions). The three motifs just mentioned also ranked as the most important ones for the faithful practising the devotio moderna, a type of piety which emerged in the Netherlands during the 14th century, advocating humility and patience in everyday life and adopting Christ as a paradigm. The engraving of the Crucifixion by Dürer (cat no 49), executed in 1508, surprises with its three-dimensionality and the depth of its space; the figures appear within the landscape rather than against its background and are captured from the side, thus shifting the perspective of the viewer.

Dürer’s impact on Northern Renaissance painting, both in Germany and in Antwerp, was immense. The exhibition documented it with several works, among them the Mocking of Christ by the Master of Messkirch (cat no 9) whose composition had been derived from Dürer’s woodcut (Hollstein, German, VII, 138). The painted wings of the polyptych of St. Reinhold by Joos van Cleve, an accomplished painter from Antwerp, include two panels with the Ecce Homo (cat no 2b) and the Crucifixion (cat no 2e), both of them manifesting direct borrowings from the Little Passion woodcuts. The depiction of Mary Magdalene embracing the cross from behind in the Crucifixion by Pieter Coecke van Aelst (cat no 3) is taken from another woodcut series by Dürer the Life of Virgin. In the composition of the Holy Trinity created some one hundred years later (cat no 5), Frans II Francken also availed himself of a print by the Nuremberg Master.

During the 15th century, printmaking in the Netherlands remained under the sway of German artists. Lucas van Leyden, often compared to Dürer was the first Netherlandish artist who, while owing a great deal to the Nuremberg printmaker, created his own original style. The engraving entitled Christ Appearing to St. Mary Magdalene as a Gardener (cat no 54) may have been inspired by one of the Little Passion woodcuts (cat no 43), but Lucas van Leyden reduced the composition, moving the half-figures of Christ and Mary Magdalene into the foreground of the scene, making it possible to concentrate on them and bring out the full emotional intensity of the scene in which Mary Magdalene recognises the Resurrected Christ. Decorative forms of van Leyden’s engravings are reflected in the Carrying of the Cross, with St. Veronica, painted by an anonymous Netherlandish master (cat no 11).

The mannerist period was represented by works such as The Body of Christ Supported by Angels, a Hendrick Goltzius engraving from 1587 based on a Bartholomeus Spranger composition (cat no 74), or the painting of the Resurrection by Johann Rottenhammer (cat no 10). The “S” curve of the body, typical for mannerist representations, unites the figures in both representations of the dead and the Resurrected Christ which are shown with fine musculature, with no signs of suffering and untouched by torture or decay. Goltzius’s prints enjoyed acclaim for their refined technique; thanks to his skill in varying the thickness of a single line along different sections and intersecting slender and bold hatching in the same fields, the artist was able to attain new effects in building forms and rendering textures. The exhibition included also a Passion cycle of twelve engravings (cat nos 61-72) created by Hendrick Goltzius in van Leyden’s manner as a tribute to this famous artist.

Paintings owing something to the graphic art or constituting a supplement, a colour “illustration” to the exhibited prints, were shown separately according to the order of the Passion scenes which, luckily, coincided almost exactly with the stylistic chronology and the time of creation. The selection of the painted Passion scenes was closed by two exquisite works with no direct references to the prints on display, Christ Resurrected with the Cross and Chalice by Cornelis Cornelisz. van Haarlem (cat no 4) and Noli Me Tangere by Denys Clavaert (cat no 1), both representing the transitional period between Mannerism and early Baroque. These two pieces illustrate scenes after the Resurrection, with Christ in the blessed body free of signs of martyrdom holding the symbols of the Sacrifice and the Eucharist in one and the meeting of the Resurrected Master with Mary Magdalene in the other. Thus, the painted iconographic “cycle” of the Passion was closed by the hope-filled visions of triumph over death.

The second room was devoted mostly to Rubens’s works from the Hermitage, exemplifying the prominent and emotional art of the Baroque, the new form of artistic expression which blossomed after the Council of Trent in the first decades of the 17th century. At this time of spiritual renewal in the Church, the importance of monumental altar paintings in facilitating religious practice and experiencing the mystery of the Incarnation and Redemption increased. In conformity with the general guidelines of the Council of Trent, those paintings were vast, colourful, legible, and stimulated the piety of the faithful by their deep emotional message. The teachings of the Jesuits placed particular emphasis on emotion, and their fostering of meditation methods was accompanied by encouragement to imagine a contemplated scene so intensely as if it were actually unfolding before the believer’s eyes. St. Ignatius of Loyola, the founder of the Jesuit Order, particularly encouraged such a practice in his Spiritual Exercises, the work which constitutes a prototype for a modern religious retreat. The deeply visual principles on which Loyola’s Exercises were based found full realization in a later Jesuit publication, Evangelicae Historiae Imagines by Hieronymus Nadal which contained proposals for meditation and rich visual material in the form of 153 meticulously prepared prints (ill 2, 12, and 17 in the essay by H. Benesz). Rubens himself made frequent recourse to that iconographic thesaurus in his work.

The subject of the Descent from the Cross was taken up by Rubens’s workshop on several different occasions in the years 1611-1625; the painted realizations of the theme were preceded by a drawing made a few years earlier, the first recording of the artist’s vision of the subject. This important document from the Hermitage was displayed (cat no III) alongside an oil sketch, i.e. a modello (cat no II), and the final altar painting (cat no I) from the same collection. The altar painting is Rubens’s third painted version of the theme, after the famous triptych from the Antwerp cathedral and the painting from Lille. The St. Petersburg composition presents the most severe and monumental treatment of the Descent from the Cross in Rubens’s entire oeuvre. Its austerity results from the reduction of the number of figures to five and the absence of scenery. Rubens painted this masterpiece in ca 1618, probably with the participation of van Dyck and other co-workers.

The Descent from the Cross was a popular theme in the post-tridentine iconography because of its clear Eucharistic symbolism. A concentrated and thoughtful co-operation of the group of persons close to Christ as they take His body down from the Cross after He has fulfilled His Sacrifice was an intelligible image of the Church community engaged in the service of the Corpus Christi. The body of Christ, captured frontally and brightly illuminated, radiating its own brilliance and also reflecting the whiteness of the shroud, constitutes the formal as well as ideological centre of the Rubens composition. The outstretched hands of the persons involved in the action receive His body in solemn communion. The post-tridentine theology, and the teaching of the Jesuits in particular, gave a special place in the community of the Church to a repentant sinner, the one who, having erred, reaches his hands out to the Saviour. In the Ruben work, this special place is given to Mary Magdalene, kneeling at the Saviour’s feet. During the Counter-Reformation period this figure symbolised the entire sin-ridden human race converting itself to God in an act of love-filled repentance. As the visual complement of the sacrament of reconciliation, i.e. penance, and, even more importantly, that of the Eucharist, this theme ranked among the most important subjects showed in the great altar paintings of Baroque times.

To the Polish public, the opportunity of admiring Rubens’s Descent from the Cross must have been a very moving experience because it evoked memories of the irretrievable loss of another painting of the same subject purchased from Rubens’s atelier and brought to Poland in as early as 1621, still during the Master’s life, and destroyed by a fire (?) in the St. Nicholas Church in Kalisz in 1973 (ill. 6 in the essay of J. A. Chrościcki).

Before Rubens returned to Antwerp from Italy in 1608, the leading role among the artists of the cultural capital of Flanders had been held by Abraham Janssens, a painter who developed a sculptural, clearly chiaroscuro style of great expressive power. Two paintings created by this highly interesting artist were also presented in the exhibition. Displaying caravaggesque inspirations which go back to Janssens’s Italian sojourn of 1598-1601, the pictures depict the Passion scenes Ecce Homo (cat no 6) and the Deposition (cat no 7). The latter painting, shown for the first time after conservation work and examination, constitutes another example of a representation imbued with Eucharistic significance. The frontally rendered body of Christ concentrates the light, the stone of unction on which He rests makes a clear allusion to the altar mensa, and the body and the blood of the Saviour eloquently visualize the doctrine of the Transubstantiation (“the entire substance of the bread into the substance of our Lord Jesus Christ, the entire substance of the wine into the substance of His blood”) which received such emphasis in the decrees of the Council of Trent. A painting of such a meaningful subject, placed above the altar, served as a suggestive complement to the celebration of Eucharist.

The paintings of Janssens, displayed at the exhibition next to the Rubens’s works from the Hermitage, and examples of what is known as the Rubens graphic school (cat nos 83, 84, 86, 87, 88, and 89) broadened the documentation of the rich artistic panorama of Antwerp at the beginning of the 17th century.

The isolated example of reproductive printmaking, associated with Rembrandt, refers to Rubens’s Descent from the Cross through the central group of figures holding up the limp body of Christ (cat no 90). Rembrandt, however, depicted the human suffering with greater realism. The exhibition also showed one of the most outstanding graphic masterpieces ever, not only in the total output of Rembrandt but in the history of printmaking as a whole: The Three Crosses (cat no 91). The multiple contour lines, the impression of movement and trembling as well as seemingly spontaneous hatching, all combine a unique, extraordinarily suggestive artistic vision. This touching, deeply emotional masterwork is one of the greatest Passion compositions in the history of this artistic medium and marks one of the highest points of its achievement.

An exhibition conceived and arranged in this way, presenting the masterly skill of the paintings and prints on the one hand and their eloquent iconography on the other, had the objective of encouraging deeper reflection on the subjects taken up in the works and making for a kind of artistic retreat.

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Joseph of Arimathea has been granted permission to take down the body of Christ - a special dispensation, since it was customary to let the bodies hang.

John the Apostle, Nicodemus and two servants lend a hand. Christ's feet are resting on Mary Magdalene's shoulders. The woman in blue is Mary, Mother of Christ.

This is the central panel of a triptych. A single element unites the three scenes - Christ is portrayed as being carried.

Rubens made this painting for the Guild of Arquebusiers, who wanted their patron Saint Christopher (meaning: carrier of Christ) portrayed. If Rubens had complied with this wish, he would have had to explain himself to the authorities, because the strict Contra-Reformation's principles did not allow portraits of saints to be hung in cathedrals. Instead, Rubens chose to hide all references to Christopher by portraying Christ as being carried in all three panels.

After the success of his monumental altar triptych for Antwerp Cathedral in 1614, Rubens received a number of commissions to produce variations on the central panel, which showed the Descent from the Cross. The theme was traditionally used in art to illustrate the Christian dogma of atonement for the Original Sin and the mystery of Communion. Unlike Netherlandish paintings of the 15th and 16th centuries, which presented a detailed narrative, Rubens treated the subject in accordance with the canons set out by the Council of Trent . Instead of a multi-figure composition, here we find only those directly mentioned in the Gospels. Thus the dead body of Christ is supported in silent grief by Joseph of Arimathaea, Nicodemus and the young John the Evangelist. Mary, gently holding her son for the last time, symbolises the Christian virtue of resignation. Mary Magdalene has fallen to her knees, the personification of repentance.
The simplicity used in conveying the emotional state of each figure, united as they are by a common feeling of unbounded sorrow, was dictated by the artist's desire to emphasise their understanding of the necessity and inevitability of the Messiah's self-sacrifice.

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