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Original fileScènes uit de passie
About This Work
A central oval frame contains the symbolic objects of Christ's suffering, including the cross, the crown of thorns, the lance of Longinus, and the Veil of Veronica. At the base of the composition, a sarcophagus rests upon a globe and a monstrous beast, flanked by a skeleton representing Death and a horned demon. The elaborate Mannerist design includes Latin verses at the top and bottom that describe the spiritual and artistic utility of the image.
The inscription refers to Christ as 'Verbigena' (the Word-born), a term echoing the Johannine Logos and Neoplatonic Christian theology. As a work by Aegidius Sadeler, likely produced in the context of the Rudolfine court in Prague, it represents the intersection of Counter-Reformation devotion and the sophisticated emblematic culture that often synthesized religious orthodoxy with natural philosophy and the 'memento mori' tradition.
Inscriptions(Latin)
PASSIO VERBIGENÆ QUÆ NOSTRA REDĒPTIO CHRISTI, NOS DUCIT AD SUMMI TECTA PATERNA POLI. EX HOSTE TROPHÆA AD SPECTATOREM. Aspice Sadleri Spectator prouide quæ sit Docta manus, nulla quæ peritura die. Utile Pictori monumentum est, utile passim Sculptori, aulæis utile purpureis. Utile si nitido argentum perfuderis auro, Utile si vestes Purpura rubra notet. D. Favol: canebat
Translation
THE PASSION OF THE WORD-BORN, WHICH IS OUR REDEMPTION IN CHRIST, LEADS US TO THE PATERNAL ROOFS OF THE HIGHEST HEAVEN. TROPHIES FROM THE ENEMY TO THE SPECTATOR. Behold, provident spectator, what a learned hand Sadler has, which shall not perish in any age. It is a useful monument to the Painter, useful throughout to the Sculptor, useful for purple tapestries. Useful if you overlay silver with shining gold, useful if red purple marks the garments. D. Favol: sang this.
Connected Texts
Thomas à Kempis
The focus on the Arma Christi as objects for visual meditation aligns with the spiritual exercises found in 'The Imitation of Christ'.
Provenance & Source
Object
Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam
paper
height 161 mm x width 114 mm
emblem
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.