Tríptico de Santa Columba, Roger van der Weyden

The ''Saint Columba Altarpiece'' (sometimes ''Adoration of the Kings'') is a large c. 1450–1455Ridderbos et al (2005), p. 39 oil-on-oak wood

panel Panel may refer to: Arts and media Visual arts * Panel (comics), a single image in a comic book, comic strip or cartoon; also, a comic strip containing one such image *Panel painting, in art, either one element of a multi-element piece of art ...

altarpiece An altarpiece is an artwork such as a painting, sculpture or relief representing a religious subject made for placing at the back of or behind the altar of a Christian church. Though most commonly used for a single work of art such as a painting o ...

Early Netherlandish Early Netherlandish painting, traditionally known as the Flemish Primitives, refers to the work of artists active in the Burgundian and Habsburg Netherlands during the 15th- and 16th-century Northern Renaissance period. It flourished especiall ...

painter

Rogier van der Weyden Rogier van der Weyden () or Roger de la Pasture (1399 or 140018 June 1464) was an early Netherlandish painter whose surviving works consist mainly of religious triptychs, altarpieces, and commissioned single and diptych portraits. He was highly ...

painted during his late period. It was commissioned for the church of

St. Columba Columba or Colmcille; gd, Calum Cille; gv, Colum Keeilley; non, Kolban or at least partly reinterpreted as (7 December 521 – 9 June 597 AD) was an Irish abbot and missionary evangelist credited with spreading Christianity in what is toda ...

Cologne Cologne ( ; german: Köln ; ksh, Kölle ) is the largest city of the German western States of Germany, state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) and the List of cities in Germany by population, fourth-most populous city of Germany with 1.1 m ...

, and is now in the

Alte Pinakothek The Alte Pinakothek (, ''Old Pinakothek'') is an art museum located in the Kunstareal area in Munich, Germany. It is one of the oldest galleries in the world and houses a significant collection of Old Master paintings. The name Alte (Old) Pinak ...

, Munich.Campbell (1980), 74 The panels depict scenes from the early life of

Jesus Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label=Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and religious ...

. They show, from left to right, the

Annunciation The Annunciation (from Latin '), also referred to as the Annunciation to the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Annunciation of Our Lady, or the Annunciation of the Lord, is the Christian celebration of the biblical tale of the announcement by the ange ...

(when

Mary Mary may refer to: People * Mary (name), a feminine given name (includes a list of people with the name) Religious contexts * New Testament people named Mary, overview article linking to many of those below * Mary, mother of Jesus, also calle ...

is visited by the

archangel Gabriel In Abrahamic religions (Judaism, Christianity and Islam), Gabriel (); Greek: grc, Γαβριήλ, translit=Gabriḗl, label=none; Latin: ''Gabriel''; Coptic: cop, Ⲅⲁⲃⲣⲓⲏⲗ, translit=Gabriêl, label=none; Amharic: am, ገብር� ...

), the

Adoration of the Magi The Adoration of the Magi or Adoration of the Kings is the name traditionally given to the subject in the Nativity of Jesus in art in which the three Magi, represented as kings, especially in the West, having found Jesus by following a star, ...

(when she gives birth in a stable) and the

Presentation A presentation conveys information from a speaker to an audience. Presentations are typically demonstrations, introduction, lecture, or speech meant to inform, persuade, inspire, motivate, build goodwill, or present a new idea/product. Presenta ...

, when she presents the infant at the

Temple in Jerusalem The Temple in Jerusalem, or alternatively the Holy Temple (; , ), refers to the two now-destroyed religious structures that served as the central places of worship for Israelites and Jews on the modern-day Temple Mount in the Old City of Jerusa ...

. In each panel, Mary is distinguished by her blue clothes. The reverse of the exterior panels are covered with plain paint and lack indication that they ever contained

donor portrait A donor portrait or votive portrait is a portrait in a larger painting or other work showing the person who commissioned and paid for the image, or a member of his, or (much more rarely) her, family. ''Donor portrait'' usually refers to the portr ...

s as were typical for the time. The St. Columba church was founded in 1467 as a burial chapel: three years after van der Weyden's death.Ridderbos et al (2005), p. 36 The triptych was frequently copied in the 15th and 16th centuries and inspired some of

Hans Memling Hans Memling (also spelled Memlinc; c. 1430 – 11 August 1494) was a painter active in Flanders, who worked in the tradition of Early Netherlandish painting. He was born in the Middle Rhine region and probably spent his childhood in Mainz. He ...

's works, among them the '' Jan Floreins Altarpiece''.Borchert (2008), 87 The work draws inspiration from

Stefan Lochner Stefan Lochner (the ''Dombild Master'' or ''Master Stefan''; c. 1410 – late 1451) was a German painter working in the late International Gothic period. His paintings combine that era's tendency toward long flowing lines and brilliant colours ...

's ''Altarpiece of the Patron Saints of Cologne'' (1440s), which Van der Weyden is known to have seen. The triptych was attributed to

Jan van Eyck Jan van Eyck ( , ; – July 9, 1441) was a painter active in Bruges who was one of the early innovators of what became known as Early Netherlandish painting, and one of the most significant representatives of Early Northern Renaissance art. Ac ...

for a period in the 19th century.

Panels

Annunciation

The elegant

scene shows the

archangel Archangels () are the second lowest rank of angel in the hierarchy of angels. The word ''archangel'' itself is usually associated with the Abrahamic religions, but beings that are very similar to archangels are found in a number of other relig ...

Gabriel In Abrahamic religions (Judaism, Christianity and Islam), Gabriel (); Greek: grc, Γαβριήλ, translit=Gabriḗl, label=none; Latin: ''Gabriel''; Coptic: cop, Ⲅⲁⲃⲣⲓⲏⲗ, translit=Gabriêl, label=none; Amharic: am, ገብር� ...

announcing to

that she will

conceive Fertilisation or fertilization (see spelling differences), also known as generative fertilisation, syngamy and impregnation, is the fusion of gametes to give rise to a new individual organism or offspring and initiate its development. Proce ...

and bear

. Mary is dressed in blue robes and kneels in her chamber before a bed draped with red sheets. Compared to the central panel, the figures are positioned within a shallow and narrow space that lacks depth. A number of theories have been propsed to explain this, including that the panel was heavily revised based on the existence of underdrawings possibly executed by workshop members, or that that the artist based it on a drawing or prototype from earlier in his career.Ridderbos et al (2005), p. 38 The panel is filled with religious iconography. There is a faux carving of the

fall of man The fall of man, the fall of Adam, or simply the Fall, is a term used in Christianity to describe the transition of the first man and woman from a state of innocent obedience to God in Christianity, God to a state of guilty disobedience. * * * * ...

on the side of the

prie-dieu A prie-dieu ( French: literally, "pray oGod") is a type of prayer desk primarily intended for private devotional use, but which may also be found in churches. A similar form of chair in domestic furniture is called "prie-dieu" by analogy. S ...

at which Mary kneels in her devotions. It is positioned so as it could be visible only to the viewer.Acres (2002), p. 433 The gold pot on the lower foreground is filed with

lilies ''Lilium'' () is a genus of herbaceous flowering plants growing from bulbs, all with large prominent flowers. They are the true lilies. Lilies are a group of flowering plants which are important in culture and literature in much of the world. M ...

Adoration of the Magi

Der Dreikönigsaltar Rogier van der Weyden (cropped) 2

The central panel is dominated by the central figures of Mary and

Saint Joseph Joseph (; el, Ἰωσήφ, translit=Ioséph) was a 1st-century Jewish man of Nazareth who, according to the canonical Gospels, was married to Mary, the mother of Jesus, and was the legal father of Jesus. The Gospels also name some brothers of ...

, framed by the

three Magi The biblical Magi from Middle Persian ''moɣ''(''mard'') from Old Persian ''magu-'' 'Zoroastrian clergyman' ( or ; singular: ), also referred to as the (Three) Wise Men or (Three) Kings, also the Three Magi were distinguished foreigners in the G ...

and their attendants to the right. The Magi are arranged in a descending, diagonal and rhythmic order, with the most senior of the kings kneeling to hold the

Christ Child The Christ Child, also known as Divine Infant, Baby Jesus, Infant Jesus, the Divine Child, Child Jesus, the Holy Child, Santo Niño, and to some as Señor Noemi refers to Jesus Christ from his nativity to age 12. The four canonical gospels, a ...

's feet while raising the child's hands to his lips. The stable seems to be in ruin, but has walls that connect to buildings in the foreground.Ridderbos et al (2005), p. 37 The

donor A donor in general is a person, organization or government which donates something voluntarily. The term is usually used to represent a form of pure altruism, but is sometimes used when the payment for a service is recognized by all parties as rep ...

is on the left of the panel, kneeling and cramped behind Joseph. He holds prayer beads and leans against the shed wall. He is depicted as a devout witness to the nativity, and is placed in front of the nearest part of a detailed and expansive cityscape that extends across the top portion of most of the panel.Acres (1998), p. 426 The city view on the panel's left contain a number of small figures walking along a steep pathway that winds downwards towards the stable.

Goethe Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (28 August 1749 – 22 March 1832) was a German poet, playwright, novelist, scientist, statesman, theatre director, and critic. His works include plays, poetry, literature, and aesthetic criticism, as well as treat ...

described this view of the city in 1816 as "full of streets and houses, bustle and industry."Acres (1998), pp. 426–427 A small

crucifix A crucifix (from Latin ''cruci fixus'' meaning "(one) fixed to a cross") is a cross with an image of Jesus on it, as distinct from a bare cross. The representation of Jesus himself on the cross is referred to in English as the ''corpus'' (Lati ...

hangs on the pillar behind Mary's head,Acres (1998), p. 424 even though the scene takes place 33–36 years before the death of Jesus Christ.

Presentation

The presentation takes place in the octagonal building's

narthex The narthex is an architectural element typical of early Christian and Byzantine basilicas and churches consisting of the entrance or lobby area, located at the west end of the nave, opposite the church's main altar. Traditionally the narthex ...

, surrounded by monumental arches, another bold and innovative use of space and perspective. The walls on the far right of the Adoration panel show the exterior of that in which the presentation occurs, creating a jarring spatial and temporal juxtaposition: the stable is in

Bethlehem Bethlehem (; ar, بيت لحم ; he, בֵּית לֶחֶם '' '') is a city in the central West Bank, Palestine, about south of Jerusalem. Its population is approximately 25,000,Amara, 1999p. 18.Brynen, 2000p. 202. and it is the capital o ...

, the Temple in

Jerusalem Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...

, yet here they co-exist as a bridge between the

Old Old or OLD may refer to: Places *Old, Baranya, Hungary *Old, Northamptonshire, England *Old Street station, a railway and tube station in London (station code OLD) *OLD, IATA code for Old Town Municipal Airport and Seaplane Base, Old Town, Mai ...

and

New Testament The New Testament grc, Ἡ Καινὴ Διαθήκη, transl. ; la, Novum Testamentum. (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus, as well as events in first-century Christ ...

s. The innovation allows the narrative to flow in a continuous fashion across the altarpiece, a device also used in his c. 1452

Braque Triptych The ''Braque Triptych'' (or the ''Braque Family Triptych'') is a c. 1452 oil-on-oak altarpiece by the Early Netherlandish painter Rogier van der Weyden. When open, its three half-length panels reveal, from left to right, John the Baptist, The ...

.Acres (1998), p. 89 The buildings above the central part of the panel appear to be far more distant than those on the left, giving the impression that the city, which is presumably Bethlehem, is sharply receding into an increasingly remote horizon.Acres (2002), p. 425

Commission

The altarpiece was recorded in the 1801 inventory of

's St. Kolumba church, where it resided in the von dem Wasservass family chapel, which was probably established in the 1460s by Goddert von dem Wasservass, burgomaster of Cologne. It is reasonable to assume such a prominent resident of the city commissioned the piece. According to Lorne Campbell, based on the number of known copies, the piece probably never left the private chapel until 1801. Sulpiz and

Melchior Melchior is the name traditionally given to one of the biblical Magi appearing in the Gospel of Matthew. There are many notable people with this name, or close variations. As a first name * Melchior Anderegg (1828–1914), Swiss mountain guide * ...

Boisseree bought it in 1808; their collection was acquired in 1827 for the

in Munich.

Citations

Sources

* Acres, Alfred. "Rogier van der Weyden's Painted Texts". ''Artibus et Historiae'', Volume 21, No. 41, 2000 * Acres, Alfred. "The Columba Altarpiece and the Time of the World". ''The Art Bulletin'', volume 80, No. 20, Sept. 1998. * Borchert, Till-Holger. "Hans Memling and Rogier van der Weyden". In: J. Chapuis (ed), ''Invention: Northern Renaissance Studies in honor of Molly Faries''. Turnhout: Brepols, 2008. * Campbell, Lorne. ''Van der Weyden''. New York: Harper and Row, 1980. * Ridderbos, Bernhard; Van Buren, Anne; Van Veen, Henk (eds). ''Early Netherlandish Paintings: Rediscovery, Reception and Research''. Amsterdam: Amsterdam University Press, 2005. {{ACArt Paintings by Rogier van der Weyden 1455 paintings Triptychs Weyden Weyden Weyden Books in art Weyden