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Christ before Pilate
Mihály Munkácsy · Realism & Academic
- Artist
- Mihály Munkácsy (1844–1900)
- Date
- 1881
- Dimensions
- 417 x 636 cm
- Medium
- Oil on canvas
- Location
- Déri Museum, Debrecen, Hungary
This enormous painting shows Christ, dressed in white and with his hands bound, standing calmly before the Roman governor Pontius Pilate, who sits on a raised seat, hesitating. Around them a crowded hall of priests, soldiers and townspeople shout, argue and gesture.
A closer look
Munkácsy staged the scene like a great drama: the light falls on the pale, upright figure of Christ, who is silent and dignified, while the crowd seethes around him. A man on the right raises his arms and shouts for the crucifixion, a mother with a child watches from the side, and the high priest Caiaphas accuses Christ from the left. Each of the many figures has its own character, carefully studied from models. The work was a sensational success in Paris in 1881 and was then shown across Europe and North America, seen by millions of people.
More by Mihály Munkácsy
In this gallery
Famous works elsewhere
- Woman Carrying Faggot 1873
- Ecce Homo 1881
- The Music Room 1878
- Golgotha 1884
- Gypsy Camp 1873
- Condemned cell II 1878