The Last Supper

All four Gospels tell of Jesus’ betrayal by Judas Iscariot and of the transubstantiation of bread and wine: “Take, eat; this is my body, ... . Drink ye all of it; for this is my blood … .” (Matthew 26, 26–28) Maulbertsch depicts The Last Supper as a scene of agitation over the coming betrayal. Only John sleeps through the turmoil, which is expressed in the foreshortened faces and effusive gestures of the other. The bread on the table in front of Jesus denotes the supper. Opposite him sits Judas, looking out of the picture with a challenge in his eyes, as he hides the bag with the thirty pieces of silver behind his back. Together with the dog, he betokens betrayal. The knife lying in front of him is a premonition of the outcome.
Maulbertsch’s treatment of light and colour effects makes him one of the principal pioneers of modern Austrian painting. Using a sophisticated chiaroscuro technique and expressive colouration, he defines the figures clearly against the background of the dark room.
There is a second version – probably a workshop copy – in the Museum of Christian Art in Esztergom. It is assumed that the top of the Salzburg painting was curved, and that it was intended to decorate a refectory.

DUCKE Astrid: Maulbertsch Franz Anton, The Last Supper, in: DUCKE Astrid, HABERSATTER Thomas, OEHRING Erika: Masterworks. Residenzgalerie Salzburg. Salzburg 2015, p. 102