Carved in relief and originally polychromed.

The rightmost section – starting at Christ’s shins – and the linen burial cloth above the knees has been replaced. The polychromy has been removed.

…; from the collection E.A. Garnier-Heldewier, on loan to the museum, since 1877; from whom purchased by the museum, 1894

Object number: BK-NM-3314

Nicodemus, recognizable from his short tunic and fairly simple attire,¹¹In the past, this figure was erroneously identified as the affluent St Joseph of Arimathea. supports Christ’s dead body, which lies across the linen burial cloth. As a sign of respect and veneration, Nicodemus refrains from touching the body’s skin, but does so instead cum manibus velatis (with covered hands). Christ’s right arm hangs down limply as an expression of his lifelessness. His body is turned towards the beholder, thus offering a clear view of the five wounds he sustained on his hands, feet and side during his crucifixion.

Wooden retable groups – especially of Antwerp make – were often composed of individually carved elements joined together with nails and glue. For this reason, retable fragments like the present one often become separated from their context over time, sometimes obscuring a proper identification of the specific scene to which they once belonged.²²For an example of a sawn-off fragment from an Antwerp Lamentation that has survived completely intact, see H. Nieuwdorp (ed.), Antwerp Altarpieces 15th-16th centuries, 2 vols., exh. cat. Antwerp (Onze-Lieve-Vrouwekathedraal) 1993, vol. 1, pp. 75 and 82 (ills.). No doubt exists regarding the present fragment, however, which is certain to have originated from a retable group of the Lamentation. Comparable scenes are found in the Antwerp Passion altarpieces at Hulshout, Elmpt, Den Bosch, Waase auf Dummanz (Germany) and Neerharen.³³H. Nieuwdorp (ed.), Antwerp Altarpieces 15th-16th centuries, 2 vols., exh. cat. Antwerp (Onze-Lieve-Vrouwekathedraal) 1993, vol. 1, nos. 2, 6, 7, 9 and 11. Traditional Lamentation iconography dictates the inclusion of Mary, John the Evangelist and Joseph of Arimathea, sometimes accompanied by other bystanders. With retable groups produced in Antwerp, Christ’s body typically lies on the ground in a semi-upright position, with Nicodemus supporting him by the shoulders or arms. Those of Brussels origin, by contrast, commonly show the body draped over Mary’s lap, in the manner of a Pietà.⁴⁴A. Huysmans et al., Beeldhouwkunst van de Zuidelijke Nederlanden en het Prinsbisdom Luik, coll. cat. Brussels (Royal Museums for Art and History) 1999, p. 88. Exceptions do exist, however. For an example of an Antwerp retable with a Lamentation scene showing Christ’s body draped over Mary’s lap, see H. Nieuwdorp (ed.), Antwerp Altarpieces 15th-16th centuries, 2 vols., exh. cat. Antwerp (Onze-Lieve-Vrouwekathedraal) 1993, vol. 1, no. 4.

Stylistically, the fragment is akin to Antwerp woodcarving around 1520. The crinkled folds of Nicodemus’s mantle appear in a comparable form in another Antwerp retable group in the Rijksmuseum that dates from approximately the same time (BK-NM-2472). Also striking is the Christ figure’s resemblance to the same figure in an Antwerp Flagellation dated 1530, also preserved at the Rijksmuseum (BK-NM-15608). Both figures possess the same tawny corporeal build. Moreover, the treatment of the hair is identical, with two curling locks of hair falling down on each side of the head, ending in front of the shoulders. Unlike the Flagellation, the present fragment lacks the pronounced Mannerist traits that would soon prevail in Antwerp altarpiece production, thus justifying a somewhat earlier dating.

Bieke van der Mark, 2024

J. Leeuwenberg with the assistance of W. Halsema-Kubes, Beeldhouwkunst in het Rijksmuseum, coll. cat. Amsterdam 1973, no. 142, with earlier literature

B. van der Mark, 2024, 'anonymous, Christ Supported by Nicodemus, from a Lamentation, Antwerp, c. 1520', in F. Scholten and B. van der Mark (eds.), European Sculpture in the Rijksmuseum, online coll. cat. Amsterdam: https://data.rijksmuseum.nl/20014996