Christ Blessing, Surrounded by a Donor and His Family (Triptych of a Protestant Family), ca. 1575–80

---

Christ Blessing, Surrounded by a Donor and His Family (Triptych of a Protestant Family), ca. 1575–80; formal portrait of an unidentified Westphalian family was made around 1575–80, perhaps on the occasion of the wedding of the unidentified man, whose age is indicated as thirty-three, and the woman, only eighteen, on the left and right wings. In keeping with this theme, the flowers strewn on the table before Christ symbolize love, commitment, faith, and possibly fertility, while the book nearby and those held by the men signal the habitual reading of the Holy Scriptures. Ludger tom Ring the Younger (1522–1584) was a German painter and

---

Size: 3000px × 2000px
Location: Germany
Photo credit: © Buyenlarge \ UIG / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No

Keywords: blessing, burgher, christ, christian, christianity, cross, crucifix, ermine, family, flowers, fur, german, germany, halo, jesus, luther, lutheranism, marriage, mink, nuptials, orb, protestant, protestantism, reformation, scripture, wedding, westphalian