The Little Passion: Pilate Washing his Hands

The Little Passion: Pilate Washing his Hands by Albrecht Dürer is an exceptional example of Northern Renaissance printmaking, executed as a woodcut between 1509 and 1510. This pivotal image belongs to Dürer’s highly influential series, The Little Passion, which comprised thirty-six narrative scenes detailing the life and suffering of Christ. Produced in Germany during a period of intense religious reform, the series utilized the relief printing technique, allowing for the wide distribution of complex theological and emotional iconography to the populace.

The scene focuses squarely on the moral dilemma of Pontius Pilate, who stands prominently washing his hands in a basin, symbolically absolving himself of responsibility for Christ’s fate. In the crowded background, visible through an architectural opening, Christ is already being led away, marked for execution. Dürer’s mastery of the woodcut medium is evident in the intricate detail, where remarkably fine lines create subtle gradations of shadow and texture, demonstrating a level of complexity previously unseen in graphic arts. The dramatic contrast between the stark white highlights and the dense black cross-hatching lends profound tension to this narrative moment.

The widespread availability and impact of The Little Passion established Dürer as one of the preeminent draftsmen and printmakers of his era. Because works like this influential German woodcut series have long been recognized for their historical significance, high-resolution prints are now widely accessible for research and educational purposes through the public domain. This specific impression of The Little Passion: Pilate Washing his Hands is preserved in the permanent collection of the Cleveland Museum of Art, where it serves as a critical document of early sixteenth-century graphic art.