Golgotha

Franz von Stuck

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Object Label

This is one of five Crucifixions that Franz von Stuck painted during the difficult years just before and during World War I. Here, Christ’s sufferings at Golgotha take place not on a high cross but at eye level. Viewers can imagine themselves as part of this intimate scene, under an eclipsed sun, standing close to the haloed Virgin Mary, the crucified thief, and Christ on the cross. The buildings visible in the background suggest an eastern Mediterranean architectural style, acknowledging the historical location of the biblical scene.

Caption

Franz von Stuck German, 1863–1928. Golgotha, 1917. Oil on canvas, 46 7/8 x 48 1/4 x 3 3/16 in. (119.1 x 122.6 x 8.1 cm) frame: 47 x 48 1/4 x 3 3/16 in. (119.4 x 122.6 x 8.1 cm) image (site measurement of painting): 41 x 42 1/2 in. (104.1 x 108 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Gift of Alfred W. Jenkins, 28.420. No known copyright restrictions (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 28.420_SL3.jpg)

Gallery

Not on view

Collection

European Art

Title

Golgotha

Date

1917

Geography

Place made: Europe

Medium

Oil on canvas

Classification

Painting

Dimensions

46 7/8 x 48 1/4 x 3 3/16 in. (119.1 x 122.6 x 8.1 cm) frame: 47 x 48 1/4 x 3 3/16 in. (119.4 x 122.6 x 8.1 cm) image (site measurement of painting): 41 x 42 1/2 in. (104.1 x 108 cm)

Signatures

Lower right: "FRANZ/VON/STUCK/1917"

Credit Line

Gift of Alfred W. Jenkins

Accession Number

28.420

Rights

No known copyright restrictions

This work may be in the public domain in the United States. Works created by United States and non-United States nationals published prior to 1923 are in the public domain, subject to the terms of any applicable treaty or agreement. You may download and use Brooklyn Museum images of this work. Please include caption information from this page and credit the Brooklyn Museum. If you need a high resolution file, please fill out our online application form (charges apply). The Museum does not warrant that the use of this work will not infringe on the rights of third parties, such as artists or artists' heirs holding the rights to the work. It is your responsibility to determine and satisfy copyright or other use restrictions before copying, transmitting, or making other use of protected items beyond that allowed by "fair use," as such term is understood under the United States Copyright Act. The Brooklyn Museum makes no representations or warranties with respect to the application or terms of any international agreement governing copyright protection in the United States for works created by foreign nationals. For further information about copyright, we recommend resources at the United States Library of Congress, Cornell University, Copyright and Cultural Institutions: Guidelines for U.S. Libraries, Archives, and Museums, and Copyright Watch. For more information about the Museum's rights project, including how rights types are assigned, please see our blog posts on copyright. If you have any information regarding this work and rights to it, please contact copyright@brooklynmuseum.org.

Frequent Art Questions

  • Why is the sun eclipsed?

    Several of the Gospels in the Bible's New Testament say that the sky went dark or the sun went dark at the moment of Christ's death on the cross. This is the artist's way of showing that occurrence.

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