The Last Judgment

Jan Provoost's Last Judgment belongs to the most ambitious category of altarpiece commission, depicting the universal judgment of humanity at the end of time when the dead rise to receive their eternal reward or punishment. Provoost's treatment follows the traditional iconographic program of Christ enthroned, the dead rising from their graves, the blessed ascending to Paradise, and the damned descending to Hell, but rendered with the Bruges school's characteristic precision of detail and richness of color. Such monumental altarpieces served as both theological statements and devotional aids, the vivid depiction of heaven and hell motivating the faithful toward virtuous conduct.

The composition divides between the heavenly tribunal and the fate of souls below. Provoost's Bruges technique brings refined detail to the complex multi-figure scene.