Isenheim altarpiece

(fin. 1515; Colmar, Musée d'Unterlinden)

   Painted by Matthias Grünewald for the chapel of the commandery of the Hospital Order of St. Anthony in Isenheim, the Isenheim Altarpiece includes in its closed state a Crucifixion, with Sts. Anthony and Sebastian in the outer wings and the Lamentation on the predella. In its first opened position, it depicts the Annunciation, Angel Concert and Nativity, and Resurrection. In the second opened position, the altarpiece presents the figures of Sts. Athanasius, Anthony, and Jerome (carved by Nicholas von Hagenau) flanked by panels of the Temptation of St. Anthony and the Meeting of Sts. Paul and Anthony in the Desert. As a work seen daily by patients cared for at the commandery, many of whom were treated for the new disease of syphilis, Sts. Anthony and Sebastian were included for their association with illness and plague. St. Anthony, of course, was also the patron saint of the order, hence the two scenes from his life flanking the carved standing saints. In the Crucifixion, Christ is covered with skin lesions so that the intended viewers could parallel their suffering to that of the Savior. The agony experienced by Mary Magdalen at the foot of the cross adds to the poignancy of the scene. When the altarpiece was opened to reveal the Annunciation, Angel Concert and Nativity, and Resurrection to patients, the sense of misery and suffering was replaced by a sense of hope. The message provided was that the Savior came into the world to bring the rewards of an after-life for the suffering experienced here on Earth.