The Good Thief on the Cross / Artist Unknown, School of Kalkar, Germany
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About this Item
Record Details
- Accession Number
- 1976/1.233
- Title
- The Good Thief on the Cross
- Artist Nationality
- German
- Medium and Support
- walnut with polychrome
- Object Creation Date
- circa 1520
- Object Creation Place
- Europe (continent)
- Germany (nation)
- North Rhine-Westphalia (state)
- Creation Place 1
- Europe (continent)
- Creation Place 2
- Germany (nation)
- Creation Place 3
- North Rhine-Westphalia (state)
- Credit Line
- Museum Purchase
- Style/Group/Movement
- Northern Renaissance
- Dimensions
- 26 cm x 12.5 cm x 4 cm (10 1/4 in. x 4 15/16 in. x 1 9/16 in.)
- Century
- 16th century
- Primary Object Classification
- Sculpture
- Primary Object Type
- carving
- Secondary Object Classification
- Ritual Objects
- Secondary Object Type
- altarpiece
- Physical Description
- A bearded man, wearing a loincloth and a long trailing headband, hangs from a cross by his arms, which have split open beneath the ropes that bind them. His left leg hangs downward and passes behind his right foot, which perches precariously on a forked branch. He strains to his left and gazes upward with his mouth open in a tortured movement augmented by the dramatic sweeps of drapery that frame his torso.
- Subject Matter
- This bearded figure bound to a cross represents the Good Thief described in the gospel of Luke who was crucified alongside Christ and decried the injustice of Christ's execution (Luke 23:39-43). This sculpture once formed part of a complex, multi-figure altarpiece depicting the Crucifixion in which the Good Thief would have appeared next to a larger figure of the crucified Christ.
- Secondary Keywords
- associated concepts
- costume
- costume by form
- europe (continent)
- events
- executions
- geographic and political locations
- germany (nation)
- main garments
- main garments for the lower body
- objects we use
- people and culture
- religions
- religions and religious concepts
- religious visual works
- visual works
- visual works by function
- Rights
- If you are interested in using an image for a publication, please visit https://umma.umich.edu/about/services/request-image/ for more information and to fill out the online Image Rights and Reproductions Request Form.
Technical Details
- Collection
- University of Michigan Museum of Art
- Image Size
- 811 x 1129
- File Size
- 62 KB
- Record
- 1976/1.233
- Link to this Item
-
https://quod.lib.umich.edu/m/musart/x-1976-sl-1.233/1976_1.233.jpg
Rights and Permissions
Related Links
Portfolios
IIIF
- Manifest
-
https://quod.lib.umich.edu/cgi/i/image/api/manifest/musart:1976-SL-1.233:1976_1.233.JPG
Cite this Item
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- Full citation
-
"The Good Thief on the Cross; Artist Unknown, School of Kalkar, Germany." In the digital collection University of Michigan Museum of Art. https://quod.lib.umich.edu/m/musart/x-1976-sl-1.233/1976_1.233.jpg. University of Michigan Library Digital Collections. Accessed May 14, 2024.