The Crucifixion

Cranach's Crucifixion should be seen in light of Luther's ideas. The emphasis upon the recognition of Christ's sacrifice by witnesses to his death on the cross is a clear reference to one of the central tenets of Lutheran theology: that sinful mankind can only be reconciled to God by belief in the atoning sacrifice of Christ. The scene is crowded with figures that are symbolically arranged at the right and left sides of Christ. To his right, the Virgin collapses into the arms of John the Evangelist, while the grieving Magdalene embraces the cross. The Good Thief and Longinus, the Roman spear bearer who converted to Christianity on Christ's death, gaze directly at him. They are contrasted by the brutish soldiers on his left, who ignore him and cast lots for his garments at the foot of the cross. Cranach positioned the contemporary figures of a monk, a cardinal, and a Turk behind the cross among the unenlightened.