The Disrobing of Christ

Bernhard Strigel's Disrobing of Christ presents the moment preceding the Crucifixion when soldiers stripped Jesus of his garments, an act of humiliation that the Church meditated on as part of the stations of the cross devotion. Strigel's Passion scenes demonstrate his ability to combine the formal dignity expected of court art with the emotional intensity required by devotional subjects. The humiliation of stripping was particularly resonant in an era when honor culture assigned great significance to clothing as a marker of status, the voluntary acceptance of this degradation emphasizing Christ's complete identification with human poverty and vulnerability.

The devotional composition is rendered with attention to the expressive and contemplative qualities that served the painting's function as an aid to prayer and meditation.