The artwork “Christ Being Nailed to the Cross” is a woodcut by the artist Albrecht Dürer, dated to 1511. It belongs to the Northern Renaissance art movement and is part of the religious series titled “The Small Passion”. The medium of this work emphasizes the artist’s skilled technique in woodcut printing, a prominent practice during that period. The piece can be found in the British Museum, located in London, UK.
The image depicts a dramatic and intense moment: the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. In the scene, Christ is laid out on the cross, which rests on the ground. The central figure of Christ draws the viewer’s eye, as he is portrayed in a passive, yet central role amidst the activity surrounding him. Two executioners are shown, one holding Christ’s hand in place while the other wields a hammer, driving a nail through the hand to affix it to the wood of the cross. The details of the figures’ clothing, the textured landscape, and the varied expressions of the onlooking figures capture a sense of movement and tension, characteristic of Dürer’s ability to convey narrative and emotion within his prints. Albrecht Dürer’s monogram, “AD”, can be seen in the image, marking it as his own work.
