The Crucifixion, with the Virgin and Saint John the Evangelist Mourning by Rogier van der Weyden

Where? Gallery 306 of the Philadelphia Museum of Art
When? About 1460
Commissioned by? Unknown

What do you see?

• Right panel: The elongated body of Jesus hangs on the cross with big nails through his feet and hands. He wears a crown thorn. We can see blood on his head from the thorn crown, blood on his hands and feet from the nails, and the blood mark in his side which is where a Roman soldier pierced him with a spear to check if Jesus died already. On the floor lies a skull and a bone referring to the hill Golgotha where this scene takes place. On top of the cross is an inscription reading INRI, which is a Latin inscription meaning ‘Jesus the Nazarene, King of the Jews.’
• Left panel: John the Evangelist wears a pale blue robe, and the Virgin Mary is in front of him. John and Mary, the mother of Jesus, are grieving. Mary also has her hands folded in prayer. John supports the body of Mary which has collapsed. A corner of Mary’s pale pink robe is also depicted on the right panel of the painting.
• Colors: The colors in this painting provide a strong contrast to each other such that the content of this painting is clear from a large distance. In the foreground is green grass. In the background is a grey stone wall with two large, bright red banners hanging over it, providing the backdrop for the figures in the painting. The cloth behind Jesus is slightly brighter than the one behind John and Mary. The sky on top of the painting is dark.

Backstory: This painting is based on stories in the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke. However, in these gospels, no reference is made to the presence of John the Evangelist. The mother of Jesus is present on Golgotha in the gospels of Matthew and Mark.

While these paintings are commonly referred to as a diptych (a painting on two panels that could close like a book), they were probably the doors of a large altar. The doors could be opened and probably lead to a large interior of the altar. It is in the Philadelphia Museum of Art since 1933. Until 1941, the sky in this painting was black. But a restorer found some traces of gold in the sky and replaced the black sky with a gold one. However, in 1990, another examination of the painting revealed that the original color of the sky was probably black and the black sky was restored. The original gold traces probably came from a golden frame around the painting in the past.

Van der Weyden also painted a somewhat similar painting, the Escorial Crucifixion, in the Escorial Palace in Madrid. He included the same people in this painting as in the current painting, though the composition is different.

Escorial Crucifixion by Van der Weyden

Symbolism: The skull and the bone refer to Golgotha which means ‘place of the skull’ and was the hill where the crucifixion of Jesus took place. The vermillion banners refer to the blood of Jesus. The dark sky refers to the three hours of darkness during the crucifixion. This darkness is described in Matthew 27:45, Mark 15:33, and Luke 23:44. After the darkness ended, Jesus died. Interestingly, John the Evangelist, probably the writer of the Gospel of John, is the only gospel writer who does not refer to this darkness during the crucifixion.

Who is Van der Weyden? Rogier van der Weyden, also known as Roger de la Pasture, was born in 1399/1400 in Tournai, Belgium. When he was about 36 years old, he moved to Brussels, where he probably lived until he died in 1464. Many of his surviving works are altarpieces, triptychs, diptychs, or portraits. He was a popular painter during his lifetime and received many international commissions for his work, which was rare for that time.

Together with Robert Campin and Jan van Eyck, Van der Weyden is considered to be the most influential 15th-century painter from the Northern part of Europe. Van der Weyden was an innovative painter. He was one of the first to include commissioners of his work as participants in the religious scenes that he painted. He also stood out from other painters by including the emotions of his subjects into the painting. One of his masterpieces is The Descent of the Cross in the Prado Museum in Madrid.

The Descent from the Cross by Van der Weyden

Fun fact: This painting is on display at the end of European Art between 1100 and 1500 section on the second floor of the East Wing of the Philadelphia Museum of Art. So, you will have to work your way through a minimum of four other rooms with art from the Middle Ages and Early Renaissance before you can truly admire the painting. However, the Philadelphia Museum of Art has constructed their rooms in such a way that you can already catch glimpses of Van der Weyden’s masterpiece from the central hallway (about 250 feet away). The iconic red of Van der Weyden’s large diptych attracts people from a long distance to have a closer look at it.

Interested in a copy for yourself? Poster or canvas

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Written by Eelco Kappe

References:

• Epslund, Lance (2015), “Finding Life Through Death; Rogier van der Weyden's 'The Crucifixion, With the Virgin and Saint John the Evangelist Mourning' Uses an Unusual Format to Tell a Well-Known Story,” Wall Street Journal, December 8.
• Salisbury, Stephen (2017), “Philadelphia Museum of Art Discovers Old Masters' New Secrets as it Preps for Next Big Show,” TCA Regional News, October 10.