Law and Grace (Gotha)

Law and Grace is considered one of the most important paintings by Lucas Cranach the Elder. As the second one of the early versions of the work, it is also known as ‘the Gotha type’ - the other is 'the Prague type'. Dating to 1529, it is owned by the Friedenstein Castle Foundation, Gotha and displayed in the Ducal Museum Gotha. It differs from the Prague version above all in how both scenes are divided from each other, thus recalling the two sides of an open book.
The left-hand side portrays Christ as the ruler of the sphere and the justice of the Last Judgment with rows of supplicants on both sides. Below on Earth, a naked and defenceless man, pursued by death and the devil, is fleeing into burning hell with its heads of sinners. Moses, surrounded by prophets, strictly points a finger at the pages of the Ten Commandments and confirms the inevitability of his fate.
On the right-hand side, John the Baptist points to the naked man on the cross as the Saviour Blood from Christ's side, bringing salvation and mingling with the dove of the Holy Spirit, spurts on to the head of the man. The Lamb of God stands above the devil and death. The resurrected Christ rises over the cave with the empty tomb.