The Betrayal of Christ

This dramatic composition depicts Christ, with eyes closed, about to receive a kiss from Judas, who clutches a coin purse, barely visible in the shadows. Christ is unaware of the noose that looms above his head, an instrument of his arrest. The somber vignette is upstaged by the violent scene on the left showing St. Peter raising his sword to cut off the ear of Malchus, servant to the Jewish high priest, Caiaphas. The object below Malchus’ body is a lantern, a symbol that was frequently used in contemporary German Passion plays.