Pilate shows Jesus to the people.
Bible in art · John
The Large Ecce Homo
Lucas van Leyden · 1510
The Art Institute of Chicago
Lucas van Leyden engraved this large plate, almost 45 cm wide, in 1510. It is often called the “Large Ecce Homo” — Latin for “Here is the man”. He made the city square the subject as much as the figures.
Far back on a platform, Pilate shows Jesus to the people. In front, the crowd raises its hands and shouts. Faces look out from the windows of a tall house, and children, a dog and passers-by fill the foreground.
From the text
- Jesus came out wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe (John 19:5)
- “Here is the man!” (John 19:5)
- “Crucify Him! Crucify Him!” (John 19:6)
The artist’s own
- A great square of Lucas’s imagining, with towers, a domed building and houses
- Children, a dog and people going about their business
- Jesus small in the distance, the crowd large in front
Details
On the platform
The crowd
Hands raised, they shout.
At the windows
Onlookers watch from a tall house.
The tower
A tall tower with a dome over the square.
Lucas van Leyden, Netherlandish, c. 1494–1533. The Art Institute of Chicago (Clarence Buckingham Collection, 1973.720) · Engraving in black on ivory laid paper · CC0 Public Domain Designation — Art Institute of Chicago open access images. The Art Institute of Chicago API record: "is_public_domain": true; the API licence text: "All other data in this response is licensed under a Creative Commons Zero (CC0) 1.0 designation".