Previous
The Last Judgment
Enlarge Zoom in

Master of Guillebert de Mets
Flemish, probably Ghent, about 1450 - 1455
Tempera colors, gold leaf, gold paint, and ink on parchment
7 5/8 x 5 1/2 in.
MS. 2, FOL. 127V

Add to Getty Bookmarks

The Penitential Psalms, a compilation of seven psalms united by the common theme of repentance, are introduced by a most distinctive two-page opening in this Flemish book of hours: a full-page miniature of the Last Judgment paired with a smaller miniature of King David in prayer.

Christ sits on a double rainbow surrounded by Mary, Saint John the Baptist, a cardinal, a pope, two bishops, and a pair of trumpet blowing angels. Below, the twelve apostles look up while praying as the dead rise from their graves. The saved emerge from a tent in the border at the left, while the damned peer helplessly out of a tiny mouth of hell in the border at the right. The image of Christ seated in judgment provided a meditational focus for the recitation of the psalms, urging sinners to repent before death.

Detail Views

Christ
Christ's banderole, left

Foliage
Foliage

Risen dead with banner
Risen dead with banner

Christ
Christ's banderole, right

Pious souls
Pious souls

Angels hold banderoles
Angels hold banderoles