The Procession to Calvary

Pieter Brueghel the younger (Brussels 1564 - Antwerp 1638). Oil painting on panel, The Procession to Calvary by Pieter Brueghel the younger (Brussels 1564 - Antwerp 1638), signed and dated P. BRVEGEL / 1602. Christ is shown carrying his cross to Calvary. He is almost lost in the crowd which gathers around him. Simon of Cyrene helps him carry his cross, and St Veronica offers her veil to him so that he can wipe the sweat from his face. Mary and her companions gather in the foreground to the right, where they kneel and weep as the procession passes them. Ahead of Christ in the procession are soldiers mounted on horseback. In front of the soldiers is a horse-drawn cart carrying the two thieves who were crucified to either side of Christ, the so-called Good thief in white, clutching a small crucifix, and the Bad thief in black. In the middle ground is a beggar seated by a wayside cross, being offered alms by a nun. Under a dark sky at the top right is Calvary, scattered with the instruments of execution and strewn with skulls and bones. To the left is a Flemish townscape of the period in which Brueghel lived, including a large, round building which represents the Temple of Jerusalem. Beyond the townscape are green fields, an expanse of water, and mountains in the distance. Pieter Breughel the Younger was the eldest son of Pieter Breughel the Elder, generally considered the greatest Flemish painter of the 16th Century. Like most of Pieter Breughel the Younger's work, this painting was inspired by his father's sweeping landscapes and scenes of contemporary peasant life, full of animation and zest. It depicts Christ's last journey, carrying the Cross to the hill of Golgotha where he was crucified. However, the animated figures in contemporary Flemish dress almost swamp the central scene of Christ carrying the Cross. It has been at Nostell since the 18th Century and is one of the finest works in the collection. Nostell Priory, West Yorkshire (Accredited Museum)