Christ Led from Herod to Pilate

Pilate, depicted with a pointed cap and long scepter, looks down from the portico of a palace. Christ stands amidst his tormentors on the cobblestone street below. A man in red cruelly grabs Jesus' chin, while another leading him by the rope turns and smiles with amusement. A beggar dressed in rags takes joy in Christ's plight, stepping in from the left to make a face and stick out his tongue. In the foreground, a dog also sticks out its tongue. The similarity of expression between man and beast is no accident, for texts of the period often referred to Christ's torturers as dogs.