Rutgers 2001
“Hieronymus Bosch in El Escorial. Devotional Paintings in a Monastery” (Jaco Rutgers) 2001
[in: Jos Koldeweij, Bernard Vermet and Barbera van Kooij (eds.), Hieronymus Bosch. New Insights Into His Life and Work. Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen-NAi Publishers-Ludion, Rotterdam, 2001, pp. 32-39]
Bosch’s paintings that were located in El Escorial after 1565, were not meant to decorate this monastery founded by Philip II, but functioned as devotional objects. This was also their original function when they were painted by Bosch. Rutgers derives this conclusion from Fray José de Sigüenza’s descriptions (1605) of the other paintings and objects that were located in the same Escorial rooms as Bosch’s paintings.
José de Sigüenza also wrote sermons that were held in high esteem by Philip II. The spirituality of these sermons and the king’s religious views themselves are closely related to the ideas of the devotio moderna. In this latter context the origin of Bosch’s works has to be situated.
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