Arrest of Christ

In a dark, wooded setting, Judas Iscariot leans in to kiss Jesus while a crowd of armed soldiers surrounds them with spears and a burning torch. In the foreground, Saint Peter pins the servant Malchus to the ground, raising a sword to cut off his ear. The scene is rendered with fine hatching and cross-hatching, imitating the style of Albrecht Dürer.

This engraving is part of Goltzius's 'Passion' series, created to demonstrate his ability to mimic the 'spirit' and technical style of earlier masters like Dürer. As a leader of the Haarlem Mannerists, Goltzius's work reflects the intellectual culture of the Haarlem academy, which blended artistic theory with natural philosophy and humanist ethics.