Christ Appearing to His Mother

Christ Appearing to His Mother by Albrecht Dürer, executed around 1509-1510, is a masterful example of the German Renaissance artist’s prolific output in the medium of printmaking. This particular piece is a woodcut rendered on laid paper, demonstrating Dürer’s sophisticated technical skill in manipulating the linear clarity and depth achievable through relief printing. The work belongs to Dürer’s renowned Small Passion, a series illustrating the life and ministry of Christ that was highly influential throughout Europe during the early 16th century.

The subject illustrates a poignant, though apocryphal, moment immediately following Christ’s resurrection, when he first reveals himself to his grieving mother, the Virgin Mary. Typical of his style during this period (1501 to 1550), Dürer organizes the space with meticulous attention to architectural perspective and dramatic emotional expression. The artist captures the intimate moment of recognition, juxtaposing the triumphant, resurrected Christ with the humble, surprised figure of Mary within a carefully articulated domestic setting. The clarity and detail of the image allowed for wide dissemination of religious imagery across German territories, establishing Dürer as the preeminent Northern European printmaker of his era.

This exceptional impression of the woodcut confirms Dürer’s technical genius in the medium. As part of a crucial body of religious prints created by the artist, the piece resides within the permanent collection of the National Gallery of Art. Woodcuts from the Small Passion series are highly valued references for scholars studying the impact of mass-produced sacred images during the Renaissance. Because many of Dürer's original print matrices are now centuries old, impressions like this one are often digitized and made available through museum initiatives, ensuring public domain access to these important historical artworks.