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The Seven Deadly Sins and the Four Last Things by Hieronymus Bosch

4/3/2019

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The Seven Deadly Sins and the Four Last Things by Hieronymus Bosch in the Prado Museum in Madrid
Where? Room 56a of the Prado Museum
When? Probably around 1500
What do you see? Bosch painted this work on a wooden tabletop. On the outside are four circles with the four things of man, which are the last four stages that the human soul goes through upon death. In the middle is a large circle with scenes of the seven sins. In the center is an image of Christ emerging from his grave with the text ‘Cave cave dns videt’, which means ‘Beware, beware, the Lord sees’. The banderol on the top shows a text from Deuteronomy 32:28 – “They are foolish. They don’t understand. If they were wise, they would understand; they would know what would happen to them.” The banderol at the bottom contains a text from Deuteronomy 32:20 – “I will turn away from them, then let’s see what happens!”.
​
The four last things: The last four things are discussed clockwise starting at the left top.
  • Death: A man on his deathbed receives the last rites before dying. Unnoticed by the people in the room, behind his bed are a skeleton, a devil, and an angel. The skeleton carries an arrow that points at the dying man. The devil and angel will fight for the soul of the man after he dies. Bosch depicts a similar scene in Death and the Miser.
  • Judgment: A scene of the last judgment with similar elements as in The Last Judgment by Michelangelo. Jesus is in the middle, angels are blowing their horns, and death people arise from their graves.
  • Heaven: The people that go to Heaven are entering through the Gate of Heaven. At the entrance, an angel prevents a devil from capturing a woman. Jesus and many angels are awaiting the selected ones in Heaven.
  • Hell: The people that go to Hell are punished by several devils. There are different punishments for each of the seven sins. For example, the scene at the bottom shows a devil showing a mirror to the woman, shown in the Pride (superbia) scene in the middle of the painting, to show what sin consumed her during her life.
(Click on each of the images below to enlarge them)
Scene of death from The Seven Deadly Sins and the Four Last Things by Hieronymus Bosch
Death
Scene of judgment from The Seven Deadly Sins and the Four Last Things by Hieronymus Bosch
Judgment
Scene of heaven from The Seven Deadly Sins and the Four Last Things by Hieronymus Bosch
Heaven
Scene of hell from The Seven Deadly Sins and the Four Last Things by Hieronymus Bosch
Hell
The seven sins: The sins discussed are discussed clockwise starting at the bottom.
  • Wrath (ira): Two peasants holding weapons engage in a brawl before an inn while a woman tries to stop the man on the right. The man on the left has already been hit by a stool and his head is bleeding.
  • Envy (invidia): The woman on the left inside the house is already married, but the man to her left is still trying to present her with a rose to seduce her. The poor parents of the girl in the house are looking enviously at the rich man with the falcon outside.
  • Greed (avaricia): A court official sits on a bench. He is listening to the case of the man to his left while accepting a bribe from the man to his right. The other two men on the bench see the bribing but do nothing about it.
  • Gluttony (gula): The skinny man on the right is drinking excessively and the seated man is eating excessively. They are in a dirty room. The child of the seated man is begging for some food from his fat father and on the left is the server of the inn coming with more food.
  • Sloth (accidia): A lazy man is sleeping in a chair during the middle of the day. He ignores his accounting business and also the religious woman on the left. His clothes are old-fashioned for that time, which is another sign of laziness.
  • Lust (luxuria): Two lustful, well-dressed couples inside a luxurious tent. On the right are two fools in suggestive poses. Fools are a symbol of lust. Musical instruments and fruit surround the tent.
  • Pride (superbia): A woman is admiring herself in a mirror that is held by a devil. The room is filled with expensive items like gold, silver, and ceramics.
(Click on each of the images below to enlarge them)
Scene of Wrath from The Seven Deadly Sins and the Four Last Things by Hieronymus Bosch
Wrath
Scene of Envy from The Seven Deadly Sins and the Four Last Things by Hieronymus Bosch
Envy
Scene of Greed from The Seven Deadly Sins and the Four Last Things by Hieronymus Bosch
Greed
Scene of Gluttony from The Seven Deadly Sins and the Four Last Things by Hieronymus Bosch
Gluttony
Scene of Sloth from The Seven Deadly Sins and the Four Last Things by Hieronymus Bosch
Sloth
Scene of Lust from The Seven Deadly Sins and the Four Last Things by Hieronymus Bosch
Lust
Scene of Pride from The Seven Deadly Sins and the Four Last Things by Hieronymus Bosch
Pride
Symbolism: In the center of the large circle with the seven sins is a smaller circle which is interpreted as the eye of God which is looking at us. In the center of the eye is the pupil which contains the scene of Christ arising from the grave. The text below this scene (Beware, beware, God sees) indicates that God sees the seven sins of mankind and that one should not commit those sins. The fact that Bosch painted this work on a tabletop means that this table was meant for a person to reflect on his sins before confessing them to the Church.
​
Who is Bosch? Hieronymus Bosch was born around 1450 in ‘s-Hertogenbosch, The Netherlands, and died in the same city in 1516. He is known for his religious works which often contain imaginative images. His style was unique and has influenced some future artists such as Pieter Bruegel the Elder and Pablo Picasso. Though not much is known about the life of Bosch, he was a high-ranking member of the Brotherhood of Our Lady in his hometown. While his works may sometimes feel like he is mocking the Christian religion, he was a highly religious man who created his works often for equally religious clients. Another example of such a work is Death and the Miser in the National Gallery of Art. The most famous painting by Bosch is The Garden of Earthly Delights which is in the same room as The Seven Deadly Sins and the Four Last Things in the Prado.
Death and the Miser by Hieronymus Bosch in the National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC
Death and the Miser by Bosch
The Garden of Earthly Delights by Hieronymus Bosch in the Prado Museum in Madrid
The Garden of Earthly Delights by Bosch
Fun fact: The Prado Museum claims that Hieronymus Bosch created this painting. However, there is some discussion on whether this claim is valid, as others people believe that this painting is created by one of the followers of Bosch. One argument in favor of Bosch is that the painting contains his name, just below the banderol in the bottom center. An argument against Bosch is that there is already documentation in the 16th century that a pupil of Bosch created this painting and that he either added the name of Bosch out of respect for his master or to increase the value of the painting.

The main reason for doubt, though, is that this painting is not very typical for Bosch. The figures in this painting are somewhat unrefined, something that is not the case in the other works attributed to Bosch. Another reasonable explanation is that Bosch painted this work together with his assistants as some scenes are of higher quality than others.

​Interested in a copy for yourself?
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Death and the Miser by Hieronymus Bosch

11/2/2018

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Death and the Miser by Hieronymus Bosch in the National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC
Where? Gallery 41 of the National Gallery of Art
When? Between 1485 and 1516
What do you see? The final moments of the life of a miser, who is a stingy person collecting a lot of wealth. The painting consists of three scenes.
  • Top scene: The naked miser sits in his bed with a canopy, within a narrow room with an arched ceiling of wood. On the left, a skeleton representing Death enters the room with a long arrow in his right hand (also note the shadow of the arrow on the curtain). To the left of the miser, a devil offers him a bag of money. To the right of the miser, an angel has one hand on his shoulder and points with the other hand at a crucifix placed in the window on the top left. A beam of light shines through the window behind the crucifix in the direction of the miser. On top of the bed is another devil holding the fire of Hell. The miser needs to choose between remaining attached to his earthly wealth or detaching from it before he dies, just like Jesus did.
  • Middle scene: The old man dressed in green is the same miser but at an earlier stage of his life. He supports himself with a cane, and the key to the trunk is attached to his robe. He faces the dilemma between faith, illustrated by the rosary in his left hand, and wealth, illustrated by his right hand with which he puts money in the bag held by a rat-like devil. Other items in the trunk are a sealed letter, a small golden weight, a dagger, and two metal cups. To the left of the trunk, a devil crushed under the trunk holds another sealed letter in his hand. The letters may contain information about the miser's (sinful) mercenary activities.  Another devil is partly hidden under the trunk.
  • Bottom scene: You can see some weapons, some pieces of armor, a jacket, and a cloak (with a devil behind it). It is not clear why these items are shown here, but there are two dominant explanations. These items either refer to the earlier life of the miser as a knight or they refer to the fact that weapons and armor are useless in the face of death.
Backstory: The inspiration for this painting comes from the 15th-century book, Ars Moriendi, which is a combination of two Latin texts on how to die well. This book discusses the challenges of dying and what choices a human should make when they know they will die. This painting by Bosch was part of a triptych. Death of the Miser probably was the painting on the right side of the triptych. The painting on the left side of the triptych has been cut into two pieces. The bottom piece is Allegory of Gluttony and Lust in the Yale University Art Gallery, and the top piece is The Ship of Fools in the Louvre. The middle of the triptych has never been identified.
Allegory of Gluttony and Lust by Hieronymus Bosch in the Yale University Art Gallery
Allegory of Gluttony and Lust by Bosch
The Ship of Fools by Hieronymus Bosch in the Louvre Museum in Paris
The Ship of Fools by Bosch
Symbolism: The moral message of this painting is a warning against greed. Humans often face the tradeoff between earthly wealth, also referred to as avarice, and faith. The items in the trunk (the dagger, metal cups, and the golden weight) represent various items that people pawned when they were in need of money. These items were typically pawned against a high interest rate, which was against the laws of the Church.
​
Who is Bosch? Hieronymus Bosch, also known as Jhernoymus or Jeroen Bosch, was born around 1450 under the name Jheronymus van Aken in ‘s-Hertogenbosch, in the south of The Netherlands. He also died there in 1516. He was an innovative painter who found novel ways to depict existing themes. He is especially known for his satiric paintings. Not too much is known about his life and therefore there is also a lot of debate whether Bosch really created certain paintings and when he created them. However, his innovative works have had a big influence on future painters, such as Pieter Bruegel the Elder and Salvador Dalí. His most famous work is the Garden of Earthly Delights in the Prado Museum in Madrid.
The Garden of Earthly Delights by Hieronymus Bosch in the Prado Museum in Madrid
The Garden of Earthly Delights by Bosch
Fun fact: Based on infrared pictures, various adjustments to this painting by Bosch have been discovered. For example, in the underdrawing, the miser initially held a covered goblet that he seemed to offer to the figure of Death near the door. This would be an obvious clue that the miser wanted to offer Death some earthly wealth to change his decision. In the final version of the painting, the miser is looking at Death while pointing with his right hand to the money bag that is held by the devil. This clue is a bit more ambiguous but still suggests that the miser wants to offer money to Death. Another example is that the underdrawing shows the inclusion of a flask with drinking glasses and a rosary in the scene in the foreground.
​Interested in a copy for yourself? Poster.

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