By Joynel Fernandes –
Eccentric and secret genius that he was, Bosch not only moved the heart but scandalized it into full awareness.’ – Wendy Beckett
Welcome to the world of Hieronymus Bosch – a cryptic cipher in the world of art! Precious little is known about the man’s life. A Netherlandish artist, he is thought to have been born in the 1450’s. Yet what remains of this eccentric is his crazy imagination that has baffled critiques over the ages. His paintings are flooded with unique visual apparatus that bear profound metaphysical comprehension. Worlds collide in his canvas – be it the sacred and the profane or the natural and the divine. His genius leaves the shallow empty and the rooted yearning for more. Through today’s painting let’s penetrate into his brilliant mind and his wacky vision.
The subject is his favourite. It is the temptation of St. Anthony. Before we attribute the protagonist to the more famous namesake in our Archdiocese, let’s understand that the saint in consideration is St. Anthony Abbott (251 – 356 AD) and not St. Anthony of Padua (1195 – 1231)
Born in 251 CE, St. Anthony Abbott was widely venerated in the Middle Ages. One of the greatest figures of Christian asceticism, St. Anthony is held as the ‘father of all monks’. He lived most of his life as a hermit in the Egyptian deserts. During this period the devil inflicted upon him every affliction. This affliction in an abbreviated manner offered Bosch a wonderful opportunity to activate his imagination and invent a rich reserve of fantastical symbolism.
As it appears, the painting can be divided into 3 parts. The left panel depicts the flight and fall of St. Anthony. In the central panel the saint is subjected to a series of mental temptations while in the right panel the saint is portrayed in contemplation and prayer, oblivious to the persecutors that surround him. The secondary scenes are infused with demonic apparitions of diabolical significance. The narrative of the scenes is derived from ‘The Lives of the Fathers’ and ‘The Golden Legend’. (Medieval text that was translated in Dutch)
Observe the imagery in the first panel. It corresponds to the Passionael printed by Gheraert leeu in 1478. The text states: ‘and the devils came back and tore him with their teeth and bashed him with their horns and beat him with their claws. They lifted him up in the air and threw him down again almost killing him.’
In the upper left panel of the triptych one can see these words translated into action as monsters torment the saint like angry insects. In the lower part of the panel the unconscious Anthony is seen drooping forward, his limpid arms hanging downwards. He is carried by two Antonite monks dressed in cowls and a secular man whose face is clearly visible. Cloaked in red, the figure is alleged to be the painter himself.
Right below the bridge are crouched three grotesque villains. A malignant messenger skates towards them with a letter against St. Anthony in its cross bill. Sporting a Jewish funnel hat, the creature wears a blood red robe. Its ears are long, baggy and decorated with Polka dots.
Things get stranger in the background. A figure dressed in a red robe and a gold mitre points out to a brothel shaped in the form of a large nude body. The head of the nude giant pokes out on the other side. He looks upwards mocking at the suffering Anthony with wicked laughter.
Turning down the same road is yet another demoniac, shaped as a fish. It carries on its back a Church tower. The fish is an ancient pagan symbol while the wheels symbolize military dacoits. In the background lies a coastal scene. A false beacon lures the ships into destruction and doom while the shore is littered with decomposing corpses.
Well if this scene is not murkier enough, we still have two more to go. The fantasy is dark and eerie. The suffering that St. Anthony endured is physically brutal and mentally clogging. As he visibly journeys from the first panel to the next, his ailing figure seeks rest. But a quick glance at the other two panels defeats this desire.
Does this mess entail a message? Does it mirror the society of Bosch himself? There is so much more to analyse and explore. This will be discussed in the next part of the article.
to be continued……….
@ The Archdiocesan Heritage Museum, Mumbai holds the copyrights for this article .
Joynel Fernandes is the Assistant Director of the Archdiocesan Heritage Museum, Mumbai. She is currently pursuing her Masters in History. Researching on Church History and Church art is her passion. She hopes to make its understanding more approachable to the younger generation.
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