Christ nailed to the Cross, 1939

Sir Frank Brangwyn RA (1867 - 1956)

RA Collection: Art

This drawing depicts Christ being nailed to the cross in the foreground while a group of men cast lots for his belongings on the right. In the background, a large crowd gathers below the two crucified thieves against a stormy sky drawn in red, orange and deep blue. The drawing is set within a rectangular border and squared up faintly in pencil. There are various sketches in the margins including two small compositional sketches.

The drawing is dated 1939 but the subject derives from Brangwyn's Stations of the Cross project which originated in a commission for Arras Cathedral just after the First World War. The scene appears to combine the tenth and eleventh Stations of the Cross: 'Jesus is stripped of his garments' and 'Jesus is nailed to the Cross'. Brangwyn's composition generally follows the New Testament description of these events but the inscription, "They parted my garments amongst them...", is taken from Psalm 21, an Old Testament text traditionally interpreted in Christian theology as prophesying Christ's Passion.

Brangwyn expert Libby Horner relates this drawing to the various Stations of the Cross that Brangwyn produced in 1920, 1924 and 1935. As the scale of the surroundings in this imae is much broader, she suggests that the composition may have been intended for an individual painting rather than a new series. She points out that Brangwyn appears to have included at least one self-portrait - the man holding the left hand of Christ.

On the verso of the sheet, Brangwyn has drawn a rectangular border in pencil, with notes on dimensions, but the space within the border has been left blank.