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Original fileChristus en zijn bruid in een wijngaard
About This Work
The Risen Christ, holding a slender cross, sits beside an elegantly dressed woman representing his mystical bride. They are positioned amidst a lush vineyard with a palm tree to the left, while the Holy Spirit as a dove descends from a radiant cloud. In the background, a stag bounds through the hills near a village, illustrating the spiritual landscape of divine longing and union.
This work visualizes the 'Mystical Marriage' (Hieros Gamos), a central concept in Christian mysticism and Neoplatonism regarding the union of the soul with the Divine. The imagery draws directly from the Song of Songs, a text interpreted by esoteric thinkers as a spiritual guide for the soul's return to its celestial origin through the power of Love.
Inscriptions(Latin)
Et curæ & moesti gemitus & quicquid acerbi Ante fuit SPONSAE, SPONSO aufugere recepto; Ergo his affatur complexi pectus amici, Nunc es o ipse meus, nec me, te præter, habebit. Quisquam alius. Posthac diuino Emblemate pingunt Cantantes placitæ speciosa Encomia formæ. Florentes instar vitis siue arboris altæ. CERVA uelut properans, ita Regnum appellit Olympi.
Translation
And cares and mournful sighs and whatever was bitter Before for the BRIDE, have fled now that the BRIDEGROOM is received; Therefore, she addresses the breast of her embracing friend with these words: Now you yourself are mine, and no one else shall have me, Except you. Henceforth, with a divine emblem they paint Singing the beautiful praises of a pleasing form. Flourishing like a vine or a tall tree. As a hind hastens, so she reaches the Kingdom of Olympus.
Connected Texts
Song of Songs (Canticum Canticorum)
The print is a direct visual commentary on the metaphors of the vineyard, the bride, and the longing deer found in this biblical text.
Bernard of Clairvaux
His influential sermons on the Song of Songs established the framework for interpreting the bride as the individual soul in union with Christ.
Provenance & Source
Object
Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam
paper
height 212 mm x width 255 mm
allegory
Linked Data
AI AI-cataloged fields generated by gemini-3-flash-preview on April 2, 2026. Getty identifiers are AI-inferred and may require verification.