Where Is Descent from the Cross? Museum Location

Q: Who commissioned this painting?

The Guild of Crossbowmen in Leuven, Belgium. The small crossbows in the tracery corners reference the patrons This work dates to 1435.

Q: Why does Mary mirror Christ's pose?

Van der Weyden connected mother and son through parallel poses, suggesting she shares in his suffering.

Q: Where can I see this painting?

At the Museo del Prado. It measures 220 × 262 cm (86.6 × 103.1 inches), located in Madrid, Spain The oil on oak panel work is part of their permanent collection.

Q: Why is the background gold?

The gold background was common in early Netherlandish art, symbolizing the sacred and compressing the figures into a shallow, icon-like space Rogier van der Weyden created it as part of the Flemish artistic tradition.

Finished in 1435 by Rogier van der Weyden, descent from the Cross around 1435 for a crossbowmen's guild in Leuven. Christ's body is lowered from the cross while the Virgin Mary swoons in a pose that mirrors her son's. Ten figures crowd the shallow, golden space, their grief rendered with extraordinary emotional intensity.

The compressed composition eliminates any sense of landscape or deep space. Figures seem pressed against the picture plane like sculptured relief. Every face expresses a different shade of grief: Mary Magdalene wringing her hands, Joseph of Arimathea supporting Christ's arm, Nicodemus holding his feet.

The painting's fame spread across Europe through copies and adaptations. The Prado displays the original, one of the most influential paintings of the 15th century.

The Guild of Crossbowmen in Leuven, Belgium. The small crossbows in the tracery corners reference the patrons This work dates to 1435.

Van der Weyden connected mother and son through parallel poses, suggesting she shares in his suffering.

At the Museo del Prado. It measures 220 × 262 cm (86.6 × 103.1 inches), located in Madrid, Spain The oil on oak panel work is part of their permanent collection.

The gold background was common in early Netherlandish art, symbolizing the sacred and compressing the figures into a shallow, icon-like space Rogier van der Weyden created it as part of the Flemish artistic tradition.

Descent from the Cross

Details

Where to See It

The Artist

More by Rogier van der Weyden

Crucifixion

Dream of Pope Sergius

Mary Altarpiece

St. Luke Drawing a Portrait of the Virgin Mary

Also at Museo del Prado, Madrid

Artemisia

Adam and Eve

A Soldier

Madonna and Child with Sts Anthony of Padua and Roch

About Descent from the Cross

Own Art Like This