The Renaissance: A Very Short Introduction (Very Short Introductions) by Brotton Jerry

Author:Brotton, Jerry [Brotton, Jerry]
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Published: 2006-04-26T16:00:00+00:00

In the 1440s the bishop of Tournai, Jean Chevrot, was so concerned at the poor attendance and observation of the sacraments that he commissioned Roger van der Weyden to paint an altarpiece that would educate people in the ritual significance of the sacraments, simply entitled the Seven Sacraments. The left panel of van der Weyden’s triptych shows baptism, confirmation, and confession, while the right panel shows ordination, marriage, and extreme unction. The central panel is reserved for the most important sacrament, the Eucharist, which takes place behind the revelation of Christ. To avoid any confusion, angels helpfully float above each sacrament, holding banners with explanatory verses. By using contemporary figures, architecture, and clothing, van der Weyden’s triptych employs a typically Renaissance technique of ‘vulgarization’, where the mysteries of the church are set against modern settings that encourage the congregation’s close identification with the painted image. The quiet intensity of the scene was also noticeably devoid of the jostling, hawking, joking, spitting, swearing, knitting, begging, sleeping, and even gun-firing that were a daily feature of church life.

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