The Crucifixion 1527

Hans Burgkmair made this woodcut of The Crucifixion in Germany in the early 16th century. The crucifixion of Christ was a central image in the religious and social life of the time. Burgkmair's print appears at a time when new printed images were transforming the ways people learned about and visualized the key events of the Bible. Here, we see not only the central figure of Christ, but also the two thieves on either side, and a crowd of onlookers including both mourners and what we might call rubberneckers. The architecture in the background gives the scene a sense of location, but also a sense of timelessness as a sacred event. As art historians, we need to understand the religious and social context of the image to appreciate its significance. Looking at other images of the crucifixion from the period, and reading religious commentaries, can help us to understand how this particular image was intended to be seen and understood.