The Glorification of the Eucharist — Peter Paul Rubens

ABOUT THIS WORK

In "The Glorification of the Eucharist," a vibrant host of figures swirls around a golden monstrance, which radiates light at the very center of the composition. This oil sketch, a preparatory work for a tapestry series, bursts with the dynamic energy characteristic of Baroque art. Below the monstrance, a defeated serpent and a skeleton (representing Death) recoil, emphasizing the triumph of the Eucharist over sin. Above, angels and cherubs tumble through clouds, their forms rendered with a fluid grace that suggests rapid, confident brushwork. The scene is a dramatic visual argument for the Catholic doctrine of transubstantiation, a key tenet reaffirmed during the Counter-Reformation, and it would have been a powerful statement in its final tapestry form.

DETAILS

Artist: Peter Paul Rubens
Date: 1630
Medium: Oil on wood
Location: The Metropolitan Museum of Art
Dimensions: 28 1/8 in. × 19 in. (71.4 × 48.2 cm)
Collection: European Paintings
Credit line: Bequest of Ogden Mills, 1929

ART MOVEMENTS

Baroque

LOOK CLOSER

What to Notice

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01

Christ raising the chalice

Christ stands at the center in a red cloth, his raised arm lifting a golden chalice high. The whole scene turns around that gesture.

1 of 4 on the painting

02

Globe, serpent, skeleton

Christ's bare feet rest on a globe wrapped by a snake, with a skeleton below. The imagery suggests sin and death overcome by the Eucharist.

2 of 4 on the painting

03

Small white dove

Above Christ's head, a tiny white dove glows against the blue sky. It is easy to miss, and it points to the Holy Spirit within the Trinity.

3 of 4 on the painting

04

Heaven above, saints below

Cherubs tumble around a bearded figure in the clouds at the top, while the dove sits in the light below. The eye climbs from the saints on earth toward heaven.

4 of 4 on the painting

05Whole painting

Painted arch frame

The brownish architectural arch with columns and scrolls is painted in oil, not real stonework. It frames the vision like a window and suggests how the scene would sit within a larger setting.

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THE ARTIST