Christ before Pilate

This is one of two panels in our collection which were once probably part of the shutters of an altarpiece made for the high altar of the Benedictine abbey at Liesborn. The shutters would have attached to either side of the main panel (of which there are several fragments in our collection).The two shutters were commissioned in 1517, about 50 years after the dedication of the altar in 1465. This is one of four scenes showing events before and after the Crucifixion, which probably decorated the outer faces of each of the shutters. Two are in our collection and six are in the Westphalian State Museum of Art and Cultural History, Münster (one of the six in Münster is on loan there from a private collection). The inner faces of the shutters were probably painted with a single image each but these are now missing.The Roman governor Pontius Pilate was reluctant to condemn Christ to death, but feared popular unrest if he did not. According to the Gospel of Matthew, he ‘took water, and washed his hands before the multitude’, saying that he was not to blame for Christ’s death (Matthew 27: 24). Here, he is seated on a throne while a servant pours water over his hands into a basin. The woman behind Pilate is his wife, who had told her husband not to get involved in Christ’s fate because of a dream she had about him (Matthew 27:19).Christ stands beside Pilate, his body slumped, looking weary and dejected. The crown of thorns has pierced his forehead, causing blood to run down his face. Despite his obvious exhaustion, Christ is detained by a soldier, a sword at his side, who hems him in with his left leg. An aggressive dog guards the steps, and more armed soldiers are gathered behind Christ, waiting to take him to the site of his execution. Christ’s appearance contrasts with the bright colours worn by the other figures, the sumptuous clothing worn by Pilate and his wife and the deep red patterned textile which backs the throne. More glorious than any of these, however, is Christ’s gilded halo.