Object data
oak with remnants of polychromy and gilding
height 49.5 cm × width 33 cm × depth 17 cm
Master of the Soest Altarpiece
Christ’s Descent into Limbo, from the Soest Altarpiece
Utrecht, c. 1475 - c. 1500
Technical notes
Carved in relief and originally polychromed. Incised lattice pattern on the right side. There are remnants of gilding and blue paint on the inside of Christ’s cloak, and traces of red on the lips of the anonymous man and the tongues of flame.
Scientific examination and reports
- paint samples: C.M. Groen and L. Vos, Centraal Laboratorium Amsterdam, August 1968
- conservation report: R. Popp, Centraal Laboratorium Amsterdam, 1977
Literature scientific examination and reports
Jaarverslag Nederlandse Rijksmusea 1973, p. 25; Jaarverslag Nederlandse Rijksmusea 1976, p. 17; K. Aben et al., ‘Conservering van de beelden van Soest’, Bulletin Centraal Laboratorium voor onderzoek van voorwerpen en kunst en wetenschap 1977, pp. 93-105
Condition
Badly worm-eaten and decayed. The right-hand section is missing.
Conservation
- E.H. Baaij, 1905: impregnated with animal glue; applied retouches in plaster, cement and paper pulp.
- R. Popp, Centraal Laboratorium Amsterdam, 1968 - 1976: treated against woodworm, mould etc.; cleaned; plaster, cement and paper pulp retouches removed; wood returned to the original colour; polychromy fixed; animal glue residue from earlier restorations removed; impregnated with low-viscosity epoxy resin.
Provenance
...; found in the Oude Kerk, Soest, with several other objects (BK-NM-12006-1 to -19), 1905;1 donated by the municipality of Soest to the museum, 1907; on loan to the Museum Flehite, Amersfoort, 1909-80
Object number: BK-NM-12006-14
Copyright: Public domain
Context
Restoration work in the tower of the Oude Kerk in Soest in 1905 uncovered in a bricked-up area an important treasure trove of statues, albeit in a deplorable condition.2 It is assumed that the figures were hidden there either in 1566 at the outbreak of the Iconoclasm or in December 1580, when Calvinists in the Eemland region endeavoured to destroy every last remnant of religious art.3
Among the carvings were five small oak groups and a number of loose fragments that together belonged to a large Passion altarpiece. All that survived of the altar case were a few wooden consoles and lead ornaments. In all probability the altarpiece consisted of a case in the shape of an inverted T, with seven compartments for as many scenes from Christ’s Passion. The case must have been around four metres wide overall and between 155 and 180 centimetres high.4 There was tracery (openwork Gothic ornament) above the altar groups. The placement of the scenes followed the chronology of the Passion story, with the Calvary, as usual, in the larger, central caisse or compartment. To the left of this scene was the Agony in the Garden (BK-NM-12006-15-C), the Flagellation (BK-NM-12006-13) and Christ Carrying the Cross (BK-NM-12006-15-B), with the Entombment (BK-NM-12006-12) and Christ’s Descent into Limbo (BK-NM-12006-14) on the right. The (unknown) seventh scene would have been a Descent from the Cross, Lamentation, Resurrection or Ascension.5 No elements of either of these have been identified to date.
The altarpiece must originally have been exceptionally fine. Remnants of gold leaf and brocade patterns indicate that the whole thing was elaborately decorated, and the carefully worked details, lively expressions and interaction between the figures attest to a very high standard of artistry. Countless style characteristics – such as the conspicuous lower eyelids of all the figures, the realism in their faces, the generally quite tight garments with few folds and the anecdotal nature of the scenes – are strong indications that the altar was created in the last quarter of the fifteenth century in the sculpture centre of Utrecht, not far from Soest.
Broekhuijsen-Kruijer gave the anonymous maker of the altar the provisional name of Master of the Soest Altarpiece. According to Leeuwenberg, two apostle figures that were also found in the church (BK-NM-12006-6 and BK-NM-12006-9) were ‘in all likelihood by the same hand’. He saw similarities in ‘the eyes and the face, the rather thickset forms, and the whole character’.6 However, the inconsistent style of the folds of the garments and the different handling of hair and beards – slightly wavy in the altar fragments as opposed to curly in the apostle statues – do not support this attribution.
As Van Binnebeke pointed out, an Ecce Homo group in Rotterdam, which he dated to around 1500 and located in Utrecht, with reservations, is stylistically akin to the Soest Altarpiece.7 The same soft-top boots, pointed shoes and rosette clasps are found in both pieces, as are the wispy hair and the variety of realistic and grotesque facial expressions. The quality of the Soest Altarpiece is superior, however.
Bieke van der Mark, 2024
The artist
Master of the Soest Altarpiece (active in Utrecht c. 1475-c. 1500)
The Master of the Soest Altarpiece was named by Broekhuijsen-Kruijer after the remnants of an altarpiece found in the Oude Kerk of Soest, a small village near Utrecht. During restoration work on the church carried out in 1905, nineteen wooden sculptures were discovered in a bricked-up area inside the church tower. Among them were seven stylistically unified altar groups clearly once belonging to a Passion retable. Despite their extremely poor condition, it was possible to determine the various scenes depicted: Christ in Agony, the Flagellation, Christ Carrying the Cross, the Calvary, the Entombment and Christ’s Descent into Limbo. In 1907, the five Passion groups were moved to the Rijksmuseum.8 Over the years, several attempts have since been made to reconstruct the original altarpiece.
On stylistic grounds, the retable can be dated to the late fifteenth century. The realistic rendering of the nude physical form and the faces, with the pronounced detailing of the eyelids, suggest the Master of the Soest Altarpiece was active in Utrecht, closely adhering to local woodcarving traditions. Leeuwenberg attributed two other figures from the church (BK-NM-12006-6 and BK-NM-12006-9) to the same master, though this conclusion appears unfounded, especially when considering the dissimilar treatment of the hair.
Marie Mundigler, 2024
References
K. Broekhuijsen-Kruijer, ‘Het Passieretabel uit Soest’, Bulletin van het Rijksmuseum 32 (1984), pp. 3-16; J. Leeuwenberg with the assistance of W. Halsema-Kubes, Beeldhouwkunst in het Rijksmuseum, coll. cat. Amsterdam 1973, pp. 60-62; B. Nederveen, ‘Het passieretabel van Soest. Kanttekeningen bij een reconstructie’, Bulletin van het Rijksmuseum 52 (2004), pp. 270-81; Van der Mark in M. Leeflang et al., Middeleeuwse beelden uit Utrecht 1430-1530/Mittelalterliche Bildwerke aus Utrecht, exh. cat. Utrecht (Museum Catharijneconvent)/Aachen (Suermondt-Ludwig-Museum) 2012-13, no. 25
Entry
This group depicting Christ’s Descent into Limbo (also known as The Harrowing of Hell) is part of the Soest Altarpiece.9 It is one of the most complete groups in this severely damaged altarpiece. The scene is what is known as the ‘Descensus’ type, in which Christ reaches out to Adam.10 Turned obliquely to the left, Christ stands on the back of a hunched, crawling monster with flaring nostrils and a gaping maw. Around his naked body he wears a cloak with imitation pressed brocade achieved with fine Tremolierung (wiggle-work). His cloak is fastened across the chest with a large clasp in the form of a rosette.11 Adam has his arm around Eve, whose hands are folded in prayer. Behind them is a man, only his head and shoulders visible. In front of Eve a monster, head straining back, crawls out of the ground. Although his head is missing, it can be deduced from Christ’s chin and neck muscles that he was looking over his left shoulder, away from the other figures. Apparently something that attracted his attention was happening in the missing section on the right.
Nederveen established that, as he had done in the Flagellation, the Master of the Soest Altarpiece based this scene quite faithfully on a print by the Master with the Banderoles (fig. a), an engraver active in the Northern Netherlands between around 1450 and 1470.12 The print reveals why Christ has turned his head: he looks down at two souls begging for salvation. There was probably something similar going on in the missing right-hand section of the altarpiece group, but there are no surviving fragments.
Bieke van der Mark, 2024
Literature
J. Leeuwenberg with the assistance of W. Halsema-Kubes, Beeldhouwkunst in het Rijksmuseum, coll. cat. Amsterdam 1973, no. 23e, with earlier literature; Jaarverslag Nederlandse Rijksmusea 1976, p. 17; K. Broekhuijsen-Kruijer, ‘Het Passieretabel uit Soest’, Bulletin van het Rijksmuseum 32 (1984), pp. 3-16; P. van Dael et al., Hout- en steensculptuur. Beeldhouwkunst 1200-1800 in de collectie van het Museum Boijmans-van Beuningen, coll. cat. Rotterdam 1994, p. 85; B. Nederveen, Soest, tussen Amersfoort en Utrecht. Een studie naar de herkomst van de laatgotische sculptuur uit de Hervormde Kerk te Soest, Amsterdam 1999 (unpub. thesis University of Amsterdam), pp. 14-15, 93-96; J.H.M. Hilhorst and J.G.M. Hilhorst, Soest, Hees en De Birkt. Van de achtste tot de zeventiende eeuw, Hilversum 2001, pp. 239-40, 260, 278; B. Nederveen, ‘Het passieretabel van Soest. Kanttekeningen bij een reconstructie’, Bulletin van het Rijksmuseum 52 (2004), pp. 270-81; Van der Mark in M. Leeflang et al., Middeleeuwse beelden uit Utrecht: 1430-1530/Mittelalterliche Bildwerke aus Utrecht: 1430-1530, exh. cat. Utrecht (Museum Catharijneconvent)/Aachen (Suermondt-Ludwig-Museum) 2012-13, no. 25g; J. Groenveld, ‘De Sint-Jansverering in een Sint-Vitusparochie voor 1580’, Tussen Vecht en Eem: Tijdschrift voor regionale geschiedenis 35 (2017), pp. 213-25, esp. p. 220
Citation
B. van der Mark, 2024, 'Meester van het retabel van Soest, Christ’s Descent into Limbo, from the Soest Altarpiece, Utrecht, c. 1475 - c. 1500', in F. Scholten and B. van der Mark (eds.), European Sculpture in the Rijksmuseum, online coll. cat. Amsterdam: hdl.handle.net/10934/RM0001.COLLECT.24287
(accessed 25 November 2024 00:34:16).