Diptych Icon with the Crucifixion (left panel) and The Mocking of Christ (right panel) (Primary Title)
Unknown (Artist)
Icons of Christ bloodied and tormented held special meaning for Ethiopian kings and soldiers. Among their personal possessions they often kept images of Christ crowned with thorns as a paradigm of courage. The disclike halos and heavily outlinedfacial features of Christ in the right panel and Mary and John in the left are Ethiopian stylistic traits. In the Crucifixion, however, Christ’s golden crown of thorns and radiant halo, as well as the muted tones used to depict his face, suggestthat the artist was influenced by a European, possibly Portuguese, painting for this figure.
From the Robert and Nancy Nooter Collection, Adolph D. and Wilkins C. Williams Fund
Ethiopia at the Crossroads, The Walters Art Museum, Baltimore, MD, December 3, 2023 - March 3, 2024; Peabody Essex Museum, Salem, MA, April 13 - July 7, 2024; Toledo Museum of Art, Toledo, OH, August 18 - November 10, 2024.
Image released via Creative Commons CC-BY-NC
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