Who painted Christ Taking Leave from His Mother?

Christ Taking Leave from His Mother was painted by Albrecht Dürer in 1510.

Where can I see Christ Taking Leave from His Mother?

Christ Taking Leave from His Mother is held by British Museum.

What movement is Christ Taking Leave from His Mother?

Christ Taking Leave from His Mother is associated with Northern Renaissance.

Can I buy a print of Christ Taking Leave from His Mother?

Museum-quality prints of Christ Taking Leave from His Mother are available made-to-order from Artifact World Gallery.

Artwork

Christ Taking Leave from His Mother

Albrecht Dürer , 1510

Christ Taking Leave from His Mother is an ink print by the Northern Renaissance artist Albrecht Dürer. It dates from 1510 and is held in the collection of the British Museum.

Inscription: Inscribed:in block, bottom right, on tablet: AD [artist's monogram]; verso, lower right, in graphite by a later hand: 627; verso, lower right, in graphite by a later hand: 6; verso, bottom left, in graphite by a later hand: B 21 [faded]

About this work

Subject & Meaning

The print functions within the German Renaissance tradition of using accessible media to foster personal piety through detailed narrative storytelling.

Created in 1509 as part of the Little Passion series, this woodcut illustrates the biblical moment where Jesus Christ bids farewell to his mother, Mary, prior to his arrest and crucifixion. The composition focuses on the emotional gravity of this separation, depicting the two central figures in a scene of solemn devotion. As a work of religious art grounded in the New Testament, the image serves as a visual meditation on the human cost of Christ's sacrifice, emphasizing the sorrow of the Virgin Mary alongside her son's acceptance of his fate.

The print functions within the German Renaissance tradition of using accessible media to foster personal piety through detailed narrative storytelling.

Technique & Style

Christ Taking Leave from His Mother is a woodcut printed on laid paper, classified as a print within the religious genre. The work belongs to Albrecht Dürer's Little Passion series and is associated with the German Renaissance movement.

As a relief printmaking process, the woodcut technique required Dürer to carve his design into a wooden block, allowing the raised lines to receive ink and transfer the image onto paper under pressure. The use of laid paper, characterized by its visible chain lines and laid patterns from the papermaking mould, is typical of early sixteenth-century European print production.

History & Provenance

Albrecht Dürer created the woodcut Christ Taking Leave from His Mother in 1509 as part of his Little Passion series. The work depicts a scene from the New Testament and is classified within the German Renaissance movement.

The known ownership chain begins with Joseph Daniel Böhm of Vienna, who held the print until his death in 1865. It subsequently entered the collection of Robert Scholtz in Budapest. By 1940, the print was in the possession of William Schab in New York, from whom it was purchased by Lessing J. Rosenwald.

Rosenwald gifted the work to the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., in 1943, where it remains part of the Rosenwald Collection.

This 1509 woodcut is held in the collections of the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., the British Museum, and the Cleveland Museum of Art. The specific impression at the National Gallery of Art belongs to the Rosenwald Collection. Its provenance traces from Joseph Daniel Böhm in Vienna to Robert Scholtz in Budapest, before passing through the dealer William Schab in New York.

Lessing J. Rosenwald acquired the work in 1940 and subsequently gifted it to the National Gallery of Art in 1943.

No specific exhibition history or inventory accession numbers for these institutions are provided in the available sources.

Overview

Christ Taking Leave from His Mother is a woodcut on laid paper created by Albrecht Dürer around 1510.