De Kriusoprichting | The Elevation of the Cross

The Elevation of the Cross, an altar painting created by Peter Paul Rubens (1577-1640) in 1610-1611, simultaneously depicts successive scenes taking place on the hill of Golgotha against the background of the buildings of Jerusalem. The presented engraving is the left part of the reproduction of this work. The hip and leg of the servant participating in the raising of the cross with Christ, visible on the left side of the print, close the scene from the foreground of the central part of the painting. On the left, a mounted troop of Roman soldiers is approaching. At the head, the commander points to the cross with a stretched mace, a symbol of military power. He is followed by an aquilifer, raising the standard of the cavalry, and soldiers armed with spears. In the background on the right, Christ appears twice – lying on the cross with his hand nailed by the servant to the transverse beam and being led to the place of execution by two Roman soldiers, with Simon of Cyrene supporting his slouched figure by the arm (cf. Figure MNS/Graf/3885). The dedication under the engraving is addressed to Cornelis van der Geest (1577-1638), a wealthy Antwerp merchant importing spice from the Dutch East Indies, and an art collector and patron of artists. Van der Geest probably mediated in commissioning Rubens to work on the altar in the castle church of St. Walburga in Antwerp, as the chairman of the parish council. In 1816, the work was transferred to the Cathedral of Our Lady in Antwerp. The Flemish engraver, Jan Witdoeck (around 1615-after 1642) was initially educated by Lucas Vorsterman I, who collaborated with Rubens, and in 1631-1633 by Cornelis Schut. Around 1635, he began to work with Rubens, in whose workshop he was making reproductive engravings on religious, mythological and allegorical themes. Ewa Gwiazdowska