Kreuztragung Christi

The work is held by the Bavarian State Painting Collections in Munich and is housed in the Alte Pinakothek.

Its dimensions are 36 cm in height and 47 cm in width.

No exhibition history is documented in the provided sources.

Kreuztragung Christi by Frans Francken the Younger remains a key example of early 17th-century religious painting, frequently cited in scholarship on Counter-Reformation visual culture. Its composition, depicting Christ carrying the cross, influenced later depictions of the subject in German Baroque art, particularly within the circle of Rubensian followers active in Antwerp and Bavaria. The work's presence in the Bavarian State Painting Collections helped preserve its visibility, contributing to renewed scholarly attention in the late 20th century on Francken's role in transmitting devotional imagery.

Its formal qualities and narrative clarity have been referenced in studies of devotional art's role in Counter-Reformation propaganda.

Created circa 1621, Kreuztragung Christi is an oil painting by Frans Francken the Younger, a leading figure of the Flemish Baroque. The work portrays the biblical episode of Christ bearing the cross, rendered in a restrained palette of browns, grays and blacks that underscore the gravity of the moment. It is part of the Alte Pinakothek’s collection in Munich.

Kreuztragung Christi belongs to the broader Flemish Baroque tradition that combined devotional subjects with detailed, naturalistic settings. Francken’s work reflects the era’s interest in cabinet paintings, small, meticulously composed pieces intended for private contemplation, while also aligning with the Counter‑Reformation’s demand for emotionally resonant religious imagery.