About this artwork

In the Betrayal of Christ and the Mocking of Christ, the artist employs the convention of equating the size of figures with their importance. Christ, therefore, appears larger in relation to the others. His face reflects his quiet resignation, in contrast to the ugly brutality of those who arrest and torment him. The Entombment below is followed by the non-biblical scene of Christ's Descent into Limbo, or the harrowing of hell, when Christ redeemed the souls of Old Testament figures, such as Adam and Eve. This subject was popular in medieval cycles depicting Christ's Passion, but was rare by the late fifteenth century.

Updated before 2020

  • artist:
  • title:
    Twenty Scenes from the Life of Christ [scenes 5 and 6 above; scenes 15 and 16 below]
  • date created:
    15th century
  • materials:
    Oil on panel
  • measurements:
    126.00 x 106.50 cm
  • object type:
  • credit line:
    Presented by the National Museums of Scotland 1936
  • accession number:
    NG 2310 C
  • gallery:
  • depicted:
  • subject:
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