Johann Rottenhammer

This German artist painted small, finely wrought religious scenes on copper panels in the late 1500s. In Flagelarea Mântuitorului he shows Christ bound to a column, Roman soldiers in motion, and the flicker of candlelight across marble. Copper plates held vivid color longer than wood, so his colors stayed bright even as varnish darkened over time. His work belongs to the final years of Mannerism, when artists packed detail into jewel-like surfaces. See how the folds of Christ’s loincloth catch the light—then tap the painting to zoom in.