Kruisdraging van Christus

This engraving depicts the Way of the Cross with intense Mannerist dynamism, showing Christ struggling under the weight of the timber while being pulled by a rope. Saint Veronica is shown in the lower left, holding the cloth intended to wipe Christ's face, surrounded by a dense throng of Roman soldiers with halberds and spears. The scene is set against a massive stone fortification, with the procession of the condemned winding into the distance.

Aegidius Sadeler was a pivotal figure in the development of Northern Mannerist printmaking and later became the imperial engraver for Rudolf II in Prague, a major center for Western esotericism. This early work demonstrates the technical mastery and dramatic composition that would later be used to render complex hermetic and alchemical allegories for the imperial court.