On a dark cloud, in a red robe, his right hand raised; the wounds are shown.
Bible in art · Acts
The Ascension
Johann Koerbecke · 1456/1457
National Gallery of Art, Washington
Johann Koerbecke, a painter of Münster in Westphalia, made this panel for the high altar of the Cistercian abbey of Marienfeld, which was installed in February 1457. It is painted in egg tempera on a gold ground.
Jesus sits on a dark cloud above, his hand raised, with figures of the Old Testament on clouds beside him. Below, his followers kneel around a green rock and look up; on the rock are two footprints.
From the text
- They watched as he was taken up (Acts 1:9)
- “a cloud hid Him from their sight” (Acts 1:9)
- “looking intently into the sky” (Acts 1:10)
- He lifted up his hands and blessed them (Luke 24:50)
The artist’s own
- Footprints on the rock — a medieval tradition said they could still be seen on the Mount of Olives
- Moses, David and other figures of the Old Testament on the clouds
- Mary among the disciples (Acts names her with them afterwards, Acts 1:14)
- A gold background, as in many altarpieces of the time
Details
Jesus
The banner
A red pennant with a cross on a tall staff.
Moses and David
A man holding two stone tablets, and below him a crowned king with a harp.
Footprints
Two footprints pressed into the top of the rock.
Mary
In a deep blue mantle and gold halo, she joins her hands.
Looking up
The disciples kneel and gaze into the sky.
Johann Koerbecke, German, c. 1420–1491. National Gallery of Art, Washington (Samuel H. Kress Collection, 1959.9.5) · Tempera on panel · NGA Open Access: "Images of these works are available free of charge for any use, commercial or non-commercial, under Creative Commons Zero (CC0)." (NGA open data: published_images.csv openaccess = 1)