Anonymous German master, the Resurrection of Christ

The miracle of Christ’s resurrection is one of the foundations of Christianity. It is the story of how Christ, having come back to life three days after his execution, appeared before his disciples. According to the New Testament, the resurrection of Christ brought about a fundamental change. Christ was no longer mortal, and those who bound themselves to him would receive eternal life. For the Apostle Paul and many Christians who came after him, the resurrection of Christ formed the core of his faith (Romans 4:23-25, 10:9) and the answer to the meaninglessness of human existence (1 Corinthians 15:12-58).

The resurrection of Christ is a recurring theme in the visual arts throughout the centuries, and while the story elements have remained more or less the same, the visual idiom has evolved over time. Christ’s resurrection was one of the most popular and beloved themes of the sixteenth century, when it was seen as a fascinating opportunity to take on the challenge of depicting the amazement and wonder of the soldiers. It also presented the challenge of portraying the variety of bodies and postures, in particular the muscles and bodily contortions that the artists of the sixteenth century, heavily influenced by Michelangelo, found fascinating.

Artists have been using pattern books for centuries – books containing concepts for images and drawings based on works the author had seen and which were considered particularly successful pieces. From the fifteenth century onwards, graphic examples also became available in the form of engravings and woodcuts. This painting is an interesting example of the works that were inspired by a famous engraving by Cornelis Cort (1533-1578) from 1569, which was in turn inspired by Giulio Clovio (1498-1578). This composition was so popular that close interpretations of it continued to be produced into the eighteenth century. A few differences in accents aside, the creator of this painting from the first half of the seventeenth century has very faithfully reproduced the composition of the sixteenth-century engraving.