Christ's Entry into Jerusalem

This polychrome delftware charger depicts the biblical story of Christ’s triumphal entry into Jerusalem, in which Jesus approaches the city on a donkey as the crowd greets him by waving palm branches and laying their cloaks on the ground. This event is commemorated by Christians on Palm Sunday and marks the beginning of Christ’s Passion, or the period leading up to his Crucifixion. Told by all four evangelists, Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, the triumphal entry into Jerusalem is considered a significant episode in the life of Christ. The bible verse is indicated on the charger as "Luc XIX," or Luke 19.

The design of the charger is based on an engraving by Jan Collaert I (ca. 1530–1581) or Adriaen Collaert (ca. 1560–1618) after a design by Maerten de Vos (1532–1603) found in "Thesaurus Sacrarum historiarum Veteris et Novi Testamenti" published by Gerard de Jode in 1585 (see 53.601.335 (94) for the print in The Met’s collection). Interestingly, the print refers to Matthew 21 instead of Luke 19. Both verses refer to the same biblical narrative.

Due to the absence of marks, the maker and factory remain unknown. The charger is dated 1758, painted on the back, which makes it one of the few dated delft pieces in The Met’s collection.