|
|
|
||||||||||||
|
|
|
||||||||||||
|
|
|
||||||||||||
|
|
|
||||||||||||
|
|
|
||||||||||||
|
|
|
||||||||||||
|
|
|
||||||||||||
|
|
|
||||||||||||
|
|
|
||||||||||||
|
|
|
||||||||||||
|
|
|
||||||||||||
|
|
|
||||||||||||
|
|
|
Petrus
Christus
Flemish, d.1475/76
Death of the
Virgin, ca. 1460-65
oil on oak, transferred to mahogany
67-3/8 x 54-1/2 in.
Petrus Christus is credited with introducing one-point perspective to Northern European painting. He employs the technique in this painting, his largest known work, which originally included two wings, later destroyed during World War II. Christus's interpretation of the Death of the Virgin, attended by apostles from around the world, is unusual because it shows in one painting the three episodes of the story. The Virgin lies on her deathbed holding a lighted candle, a symbol of her faith. Above, her soul ascends to God the Father. On the far right, an angel drops the Virgin's girdle to St. Thomas as proof of the Assumption.