Ecce Homo

Oil on canvas

123 x 103 cm.

With antique frame (in good condition, with some flaws and minor losses): 149 x 128 cm.

The composition captures the moment in the Passion of Christ when Pontius Pilate, then the Roman governor of Judea, presents the scourged Jesus to the people of Jerusalem, uttering the words ‘Ecce Homo’ (literally, ‘Behold the Man’) to curry favour with the crowd, aware that he had condemned an innocent man.

At the centre of the canvas we see the powerful figure of Christ, whose face is defiant, showing no sign of suffering so as to reveal an inner strength, with a crown of thorns resting upon his long hair, his hands bound and stripped of his clothes, and behind him a Roman soldier in armour raising a dramatic red drapery.

This is a fine period copy attributed to a follower of Rubens and is directly inspired by the famous original painted by the Flemish master around 1612, one of his early masterpieces now housed in the Hermitage Museum in St Petersburg (Fig. 1).

The work immediately established itself as a benchmark for Baroque painting, sublimely blending Flemish realism with the monumentality of Greco-Roman sculpture, which Rubens had studied during his stay in Italy (1600–1608).

In particular, to convey the anatomical power of Christ’s pose, Rubens drew inspiration from the famous ‘Centaur’ in Villa Borghese, adopting its idealised anatomy, the vigorous bare torso thrust forward and the hands bound behind the back, as evidenced by several drawings the master produced during his visit to Rome (Fig. 2 and Fig. 3).

The work enjoyed immediate success, giving rise to famous copies, workshop variants and derivations, intended for the collectors of the time.

A key factor in its widespread dissemination was the print by Cornelis Galle II (1615–1678), which enabled Rubens’s drawing to circulate extensively throughout Europe, becoming the ‘primary source’ from which a great many Flemish and Italian painters of the period derived their own painted copies (Fig. 4).

Among the most famous period versions, we may mention that in the Staatsgalerie im neuen Schloss Schleissheim (Fig. 5 - https://rkd.nl/images/275207 ) and that held by the Cultural Heritage Agency (Netherlands), catalogued under inventory code B595 and attributed to the master’s circle or school, which bear witness to the immediate spread of the composition throughout Flanders. We may also mention the version at the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam, historically linked to Rubens’s iconography (Fig. 6 – https://rkd.nl/images/40088), painted by the Dutch artist Woutherus Mol (1785–1857).

Also from the same period, we might mention what is perhaps the most famous replica of our *Ecce Homo*, namely that in the M Museum in Leuven, Belgium (Fig. 7 - https://www.mleuven.be/collectie/ecce-homo-0), painted by Daniel Seghers between 1612 and 1651, one of the many painters commissioned to produce replicas and copies of Rubens’s paintings for prominent members of royalty, such as Queen Isabella of Bourbon of Spain.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

In good condition. With an antique frame (in good condition, with some flaws and minor losses).

The work is sold complete with a certificate of authenticity and a descriptive iconographic sheet.

We arrange and organise the transport of purchased works, both within Italy and abroad, using professional and insured carriers.

It is also possible to view the painting at our gallery in Riva del Garda, by appointment, where we will be delighted to welcome you and show you the works that interest you.

Please feel free to contact us, with no obligation, for any further information.

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