The Birth and Naming of Saint John the Baptist; (reverse) Trompe-l'oeil with Painting of The Man of Sorrows

Bernard van Orley

ca. 1514–15 · Oil on wood · European Paintings

This panel once formed the left wing of an altarpiece dedicated to Saint John the Baptist that was commissioned by Abbot Jacques Coëne for the Benedictine Abbey Church in Marchiennes, near Tournai. It depicts Saint Elizabeth in bed, shortly after giving birth. Zacharias appears at the entrance to her room, carrying a scroll that declares his son’s name will be John. The pendant shows the moment after the Baptist’s death, when Salome receives his head on a platter. The abbot’s crozier, or hooked staff, on the marbleized reverse refers to the patron.

Artist

Bernard van Orley

Date

ca. 1514–15

Medium

Oil on wood

Department

European Paintings

Credit line

Bequest of Hertha Katz, 2000