Death and the Miser
(36 5/8" x 12", c. 1500)
Hieronymus Bosch
(c. 1450-1516)



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In doing research for the Annals of Lystra, Robin has frequently encountered the works of medieval artist Hieronymus Bosch. His imagination, faith and talent have made him one of her favorite artists; above is one of her favorite Bosch paintings. The following commentary on this painting from a 1951 Art News Annual says it all:

"The purely painterly qualities of Bosch cannot be explained without some reference to the subjects of his powerful fantasy. In the case of this painting, the two are closely intertwined. The general theme of the dying rich man was common in the late fifteenth century, both as a later reaction in northern Europe to the Black Death and subsequent plagues, and as a warning based on the widespread fear that the year 1500 would bring the millennial Day of Judgment. Books on the 'art of dying'—Ars Moriendi—were published in German and Lowland towns, and they included special admonitions to the rich to prepare themselves for soon-oncoming eternity. . . .

"Undoubtedly this is the general idea behind Bosch's painting. In the foreground, the still active miser is hoarding his gold as he drops coins into the chest inhabited by a little devil of avarice, and another devil taunts him by holding up an unpaid promissory note.

"As the story is told simultaneously, the second episode takes place in both the background and extreme foreground. The abandoned helmet, lance, and sword denote the passing of earthly power while in the rear, on his deathbed, the miser, just as Death enters the door, is still torn between the angel pointing up to the crucifix and the imp holding the moneybag. Altogether, Bosch points his comment more sharply toward the vice of avarice . . . with still an additional barb through emphasis on the rosary which the miser clutches with one hand as he hoards his gold with the other."

For more information on Bosch, click here.


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