The Entombment of Christ

The Entombment of Christ by the Master of 1486-1487, part of the same Passion cycle as his Capture of Christ, depicts the solemn act of laying Christ's body in the tomb — a subject bridging the narrative climax of the Crucifixion with the anticipation of the Resurrection. Joseph of Arimathea, Nicodemus, and the holy women lower the body into the stone sarcophagus, each figure's grief carefully individuated. This subject gained new emotional depth in the fifteenth century through Netherlandish painting, which introduced psychological realism into previously schematic Passion imagery. The Warsaw panel reflects this northern influence reaching the Polish sphere.

The horizontal disposition of Christ's body dominates the composition, with mourning figures arranged around it in a shallow frieze. The master renders linen shroud textures carefully. A darkening landscape behind frames the scene, with the empty crosses of Calvary visible in the middle distance.