Description
The moment following Christ’s Crucifixion is described quite movingly in this painting, as Christ is about to be placed in his tomb before his Resurrection. At this very moment, he is surrounded by his closest confidants: his mother, Mary; Mary Magdalene; Mary, the mother of James and Joseph; and, finally, John the Evangelist. Through this painting, Rubens sought to inspire faith and empathy in the viewer by vividly depicting Christ’s pale skin, lifeless body, open wounds and the grief of those mourning him.
Because of his distinctive style and the nudity that dominates most of his paintings, they have been graciously given the title “Rubenesque”; even today, Rubens remains one of the most prominent painters of all time, thanks to the freshness, meticulousness and layered symbolism of his monumental works.
Rubens painted two paintings with the same name: see Rubens’s The Entombment here.