Christ Giving the Keys to St Peter

This monumental composition by Peter Paul Rubens (1577–1640) takes its subject from the Gospel of St Matthew, in which the resurrected Christ says to Simon, a fisherman from Galilee:

“… thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven” (Matthew 16:18–19).

The gift of the keys is seen as establishing the institution of the papacy. The two keys – one a symbol of binding, the other of unlocking – thus form the centre of the picture.

Christ’s sweeping gesture of blessing, with which he points toward Heaven, is particularly forceful …

… and contrasts with Peter’s meek posture and his hand movements, which convey both gratitude and fear.

The significance of this event is reflected in the faces of the four tightly clustered disciples in the background. Paul’s expression of shock seems directed outside the frame of the picture and into our own space.

To his right is the gentle, tender face of John, “whom Jesus loved”.

At the far right, the play of gazes ends in the figure of Jacob, who looks directly at Christ.

The two main figures make up the entire foreground, standing in front of the disciples and a shadowy architectural element to the right. Light comes from an unspecified source on the left.

The monumentality of the painting is not emphasised in the plasticity of the figures alone; Christ’s athletic, half-exposed form is also given weight by the shining red garment that drapes his body.

Peter’s yellow cloak falls in heavy folds. The intense colours, animated by bright light and deep shadow, dominate the entire composition.