The Aftermath (Deposition, Lamentation, Pieta, and Entombment) 

Basic Info

Matthew 27:57–66, Mark 15:42–47, Luke 23:50–56, John 19:38–42

The events between Jesus' death and his being sealed in the tomb are common topics for Christian art. Each Gospel tells the story a little differently, but the main contours of the story are the same: Joseph of Arimathea asks Pilate for Jesus’ body, wraps it in linen, and lays it in a tomb. Matthew, Mark, and Luke tell of women who witnessed the body’s being put in the tomb. John says Nicodemus brought a hundred pounds of myrrh and aloes that he and Joseph anointed the body with before putting it in the tomb. Matthew adds that Pilate posted guards at the tomb for fear that Jesus’ followers would steal the body and say that Jesus had been resurrected.

The artistic tradition tends to treat this brief story as four discrete events: (1) taking Jesus down from the cross (commonly referred to as the Deposition); (2) lamentation by a group of people surrounding Jesus’ dead body (usually called the Lamentation); (3) Mary’s lamentation over Jesus with his dead body in her lap (usually called the Pieta, Italian for “pity”), reminiscent of her holding the Child Jesus in her lap; and (d) placing Jesus in the tomb (which goes by various names in the art tradition).

There is something important about life in these images. After all the heady excitement of the Last Supper, the arrest, the beating, the questioning and trials, there is still a body to be handled. These are Jesus’ followers when the buzz of being around his charismatic person is not what is keeping them there. The artworks are a way to look at what his followers have learned from Jesus about living.

What to Look For

• Who is participating in taking Jesus’ body down from the cross
• How Jesus’ lifeless body is depicted (heavy, bloody, attractive, etc.)
• The emotions of the various people in the artwork (expressions, gestures, etc.)
• The posture or demeanor of the people toward Jesus’ body (tender, strong, tearful, etc.)
• Mary’s expression as she holds Jesus’ dead body in her lap
• Similarities and differences between Pieta images and Madonna and Child images
• How the tomb is depicted

Questions to Focus a General Interpretation

How do the people depicted in the artwork exemplify “life?” What does this “life” say when juxtaposed with the death exemplified in Jesus’ body?

If the Christian message is all about how great it is that Jesus died so that human beings could be freed from sin, why would there be so much mourning and lamentation over his death?

Questions to Guide a Personal Interpretation

As much as contemporary Westerners may try to avoid it, death is a fact of human life. Does the artwork effectively offer solace or a “you are not alone in your suffering” feeling to you as a viewer who has experienced the death of a loved one?

Does the artwork model for you how to be a life presence for someone else who might be experiencing the sorrow of the death of a loved one?

Questions to Suggest a Historical Interpretation

What death rituals and funeral practices from the artist’s time and place might be reflected in this artwork?

A cult of tears developed in Medieval times. Thus any artist who could inspire tears was lauded for his or her skill. Does it seem that this artist is trying to evoke tears in his or her viewers?