Man of Sorrows (diptych)

Aelbrecht Bouts painted this Man of Sorrows diptych around 1490 in Leuven, reproducing a devotional image type established by his father Dieric Bouts. The Man of Sorrows, showing the suffering Christ, was among the most powerful devotional image types in Northern European piety, designed for intimate personal contemplation. Aelbrecht's versions became widely copied throughout the Netherlands. This work belongs to the High Renaissance, when the innovations of the preceding century were synthesized into works of monumental clarity and ideal beauty.

Oil on panel in diptych format with the meticulous Netherlandish technique inherited from the Bouts workshop. The close-up of Christ's suffering face creates an intense devotional focus.