ISENHEIM ALTARPIECE

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

Painted byMatthias Grünewaldfor the chapel of the commandery of the Hospital Order of St. Anthony in Isenheim, theIsenheimAltarpieceincludes in its closed state aCrucifixion, with Sts. Anthony andSebastianin the outer wings and theLamentationon thepredella.In its first opened position, it depicts theAnnunciation, Angel Concert and Nativity, andResurrection. In the second opened position, the altarpiece presents the figures of Sts. Athanasius, Anthony, andJerome(carved by Nicholas von Hagenau) flanked by panels of theTemptation of St.Anthonyand theMeeting of Sts.Pauland 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 andplague. 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 theCrucifixion, Christ is covered with skin lesions so that the intended viewers could parallel their suffering to that of the Savior. The agony experienced byMary Magdalenat the foot of the cross adds to the poignancy of the scene. When the altarpiece was opened to reveal theAnnunciation,Angel Concert and Nativity, andResurrectionto 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.