Bosch's Haywain Triptych: A Glimmer of Hope on the Road to Hell
Description/Abstract/Artist Statement
Very little is known about the life of the Late Medieval Dutch painter Hieronymus Bosch (1450-1516), leaving room for varied analyses of his work. The Haywain, one of his secular triptychs, generates debate, as scholars attempt to decipher an abundance of unconventional enigmatic imagery. There is broad consensus that this triptych satirizes avarice and lust and predicts damnation without exception for all of humankind. While the Haywain lays out the origin and evolution of sin, from Heaven to Eden to Earth to Hell, this paper argues that it also offers a singular moment of hope in the love scene on top of the hay mound. There, a woman closes her eyes to the worldly temptations that crowd her and looks within to examine the state of her soul and contemplate the example set by Christ. The reinterpretation of this scene draws from popular theological and contemporary literature and provides the key to understanding the Haywain. In what might be his final work, Bosch depicts an allegory of self-reflection and free will, confronting viewers with both their morality and mortality, which is an objective shared by several of Bosch’s other major panels.
Faculty Advisor/Mentor
Anne H. Muraoka
College Affiliation
College of Arts & Letters
Presentation Type
Oral Presentation
Disciplines
Ancient, Medieval, Renaissance and Baroque Art and Architecture
Session Title
Art History 3: Matters of Interpretation
Location
Zoom Room R
Start Date
3-20-2021 12:00 PM
End Date
3-20-2021 12:55 PM
Bosch's Haywain Triptych: A Glimmer of Hope on the Road to Hell
Zoom Room R
Very little is known about the life of the Late Medieval Dutch painter Hieronymus Bosch (1450-1516), leaving room for varied analyses of his work. The Haywain, one of his secular triptychs, generates debate, as scholars attempt to decipher an abundance of unconventional enigmatic imagery. There is broad consensus that this triptych satirizes avarice and lust and predicts damnation without exception for all of humankind. While the Haywain lays out the origin and evolution of sin, from Heaven to Eden to Earth to Hell, this paper argues that it also offers a singular moment of hope in the love scene on top of the hay mound. There, a woman closes her eyes to the worldly temptations that crowd her and looks within to examine the state of her soul and contemplate the example set by Christ. The reinterpretation of this scene draws from popular theological and contemporary literature and provides the key to understanding the Haywain. In what might be his final work, Bosch depicts an allegory of self-reflection and free will, confronting viewers with both their morality and mortality, which is an objective shared by several of Bosch’s other major panels.