The miraculous adventures of Munkácsy’s huge paintings
Christ before pilate, Golgota, Ecce Homo
MúzeumCafé 20.
The ceaseless wanderig of Munkácsy’s Trilogy is unique in the international history of art collection, and it is little short of miraculous that the three paintings survived their ordeal. Possibly Munkácsy himself never thought that his huge works, which together are 90 square metres in size, would move across Europe and America for a century. Most recently all three were displayed in Pécs and preparations are underway for them to appear in the Hungarian National Gallery in Budapest. Christ Before Pilate was exhibited in Paris in 1881, then in 1884 Munkácsy unveiled Golgotha. Two years later he completed Ecce Homo, which also toured Europe, albeit less successfully. Munkácsy was behind the times, since in Paris new trends were taking hold. Today, however, the picture has regained admirers and attracts thousands of visitors. The first success of the Biblical theme captivated Munkácsy, thus after completing Christ Before Pilate he started on the Calvary image. For his models he chose Italians and Polish and Russian Jews. For the figure of Christ he used a photograph of himself on a cross as a model. The two paintings made a triumphal procession across Europe, from Paris reaching Vienna, Budapest, Brussels, Amsterdam and London. In 1886 they were shipped to America where Christ Before Pilate was immediately bought by John Wanamaker, a rich businessman. Later he purchased Golgotha, too. He took his treasures to his country home in Lindenhurst near Philadelphia, but they were displayed at the 1889 Paris World Exhibition and won a gold medal. In 1893 they appeared in Chicago at an exhibition marking the 400th anniversary of the discovery of America, after which they were returned to the Wanamaker residence. In 1907 the house was destroyed by fire. The two large paintings were saved by being cut from their frames and put out on the snow. The first major restoration was undertaken to deal with the damage caused by the fire and the manner of their rescue. In 1911 Wannamaker transferred the two paintings to his newly built department store in Philadelphia where they were publicly displayed every Easter in the company of toy rabbits and chocolate eggs. It became de rigueur to view the paintings and there was hardly a Hungarian-American who didn’t go to see them. The business was sold in 1987 and the Wannamaker collection was auctioned at Sotheby’s. With this the paths of these symbols of the history of American art collection parted. Golgotha remained in the US, while Christ Before Pilate went to Canada. The owner of Golgotha deposited it in Hungary. After its ocean voyage the painting arrived half mouldy and soaked, without any insurance. In August 1993, with the help of the Debrecen fire brigade, it was hoisted through the first-floor window of the Déri Museum and placed next to Ecce Homo. Although Golgotha was later bought by Imre Pákh, it remained in place in Debrecen. In February 1995 Christ Before Pilate also reached Debrecen. Its owner, the Canadian businessman Joe Tannenbaum, insured it for a million dollars. Following restoration, it joined the others in the Déri Museum.