Christ in Emmaus. From: The small Passion.

The Passion usually refers to the physical and spiritual suffering of Jesus Christ in the last days of his life. This subject was especially popular in Germany in the 15th and 16th centuries. The Church used art, especially in the form of woodcut prints, to tell the story to an often illiterate public. The iconography (use of symbols to explain the subject matter) was well developed by the late Middle Ages and was easily recognisable. In depicting the Passion, Albrecht Dürer could add something to traditional iconography and increase the number of stories depicted.

The cycle of the Small Passion that the artist started after his second journey to Italy (1505–1507), is a very detailed story of the martyrdom and death of Christ. While only a few of the plates are dated, these suggest that Dürer began with Christ's Entry into Jerusalem and concluded with The Last Judgement. However, as he was concluding the series in c. 1510, he added The Fall of Man, a Biblical antetype (foreshadowing) of the New Testament. The eventual cycle included not only the Passion itself but also stories from the Old Testament linked with the sacrifice of the Saviour and legends about the youth of Jesus. The focus therefore changed to a history of humankind with Adam and Eve as the source of its woes and Jesus as its salvation. 

The first edition was published in 1511, with the Latin text on the reverse; in Venice, in 1612, it was published with the Italian text. Publication took the form of a devotional boook of 38 leaves in small quarto format, comprising a title page, 36 woodcuts and a colophon, an end statement giving information about its authorship and printing, in this case with the printer identified as 'Albrecht Dürer, painter'. The Latin text was provided by the Benedictine theologian and monk Benedictus Chelidonius, who also wrote a longer text for the Large Passion, which was also published in 1511. The Small Passion was incredibly popular in European countries during the succeeding centuries. It was republished as a full cycle or as separate sheets.

In Christ in Emmaus, Plate 32 out of 36, Christ appears to his startled disciples when they are having supper (it is often alternatively titled Supper at Emmaus). Dürer has pictured 'the exact moment' when the disciples recognise the newly-risen Christ. 'An instant later, Christ would disappear. The plates are still empty, food has not been touched, as the disciple on the left fixes his eyes on Jesus, as if hypnotised. The one opposite reaches for his chest in a gesture of amazement'. (Walter Strauss, Albrecht Dürer Woodcuts and Wood Blocks, New York, 1980).

On the website Lutheran.Reformation.org, Deaconess Carolyn Brinkley writes: 'Dürer’s Small Passion closes Easter Day with the evening meal at dusk. The Emmaus woodcut captures the stunning moment of faith’s recognition of the Savior. Jesus is the host at the meal. His presence brings forgiveness, life, and salvation. These gifts were destroyed at the first meal in the Garden of Eden. Just as the nail-pierced hands of Jesus are breaking the bread, the eyes of Cleopas, dressed as a Renaissance traveler, are opened. He clutches his heart. It is the Lord! The Risen Lord! Suddenly all the truths of Scripture their traveling companion had taught them on the afternoon’s walk become crystal clear. Although the [Gospel of Luke] narrative mentions only two people, the artist has inserted several others in the background, providing a foretaste of the Holy Christian Church, where many will gather in the real presence of Christ. Dürer leaves space at the end of the small table for you to join in the supper. He is also present, for his monogram is on the bench, as well as in the table legs and cloth'.

See also: http://www.spaightwoodgalleries.com/Pages/Durer_Small_Passion3.html

Dr Mark Stocker   Curator, Historical International Art                               December 2016