Art Institute of Chicago

The Baptism of Christ in the River Jordan

Lucas van LeydenLinkedCulture matchlcp-5bb62ebcead4

Date

about 1510

Medium

Engraving in black on ivory laid paper

Culture

Netherlands

Department

Prints and Drawings

Institution

Art Institute of Chicago

Object ID

106568

Lucas van Leyden’s inverted staging of Christ’s baptism differs significantly from the Martin Schongauer engraving seen nearby. While Schongauer placed the important action in front of a rocky landscape, Lucas concealed it in a forest grove, instead emphasizing the onlookers and the small child at the bottom, who gestures toward Christ. Lucas often used this pictorial device to reset expectations about the subject of his prints, lingering on the costumes and characterizations in the foreground. Here, his avoidance of haloes, heavenly hosts, and the anachronistic volume consulted by Schongauer’s John turn the baptism into a more commonplace event.

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