23 Corpus
Flemish, circa 1680-1720
Boxwood
48.3 cm (19 in.)
82.SD.138.1
This elegant depiction of the crucified Christ is unusual in its gentle sensuality and
avoidance of details suggestive of Christ's physical suffering. The crown of thorns, the
lance wound to the side, and any indication of blood dripping from the nail holes are
all absent from this portrayal. Christ's musculature is smooth and strong, showing
no signs of emaciation. His torso forms a sinuous curve, with one hip raised. The
loincloth, which falls in directional folds that echo the sway of his body, is held in
place by a double rope forming decorative semicircles at his hips. His robust and
fluidly modeled arms are relatively horizontal, defying the weight of his lifeless body,
or corpus; his figure would seem to float in front of the cross rather than hang from it.
Christ's serene face, with gently closed eyes and mouth, and unwrinkled brow, registers
no sign of agony.
The sculptor of the Museum's Corpus has ingeniously combined the traditional
iconography of Cristo morto, the dead Christ on the cross, with that of Cristo vivo,
Christ alive on the cross. Before the tenth century, Crucifixion scenes commonly
portrayed Christ on the cross with his arms held out horizontally and his facial
expression alert and triumphant, as victor over sin. Later, Christ was more often
depicted dead on the cross, his arms stretched vertically and pulled by the weight
of his limp body, his torso emaciated and bearing the wounds of his torture and
suffering. By the sixteenth century, the two iconographies existed concurrently.
The diffusion of both types in Flemish sculpture was highly influenced by the
painted compositions of Peter Paul Rubens. Rubens's importance for the Museum's
Corpus is apparent in the positioning of the head and the physiognomy and expression
of the face. PAF70 EUROPEAN SCULPTURE