scalia himself commissnedthis n as an alrpce for a urchn antwerp. it is van dyck's last surviving religious painting. in a conricted format, he presents the dead body of christ and captures the full pathos of mary's intense sorrow. ter spending about a year in fl van dyck returned to england in 1635 to resume his responsibilities as court pnter forharles i the tist cho an unusual oval format to emphasize the bond betwn enon porter...and himself. sugg the firmfoundation ofr loanng fridship. van dyck onlremainingmythologik from his english period, probably painted for the king a qen, ishiwonderful poetic image representing the myth of cupid and psyche. psyche, a beautiful mortal, was sent by venus to the underworld to meet with persephone and bring back a box containing the secrets of her beauty. when the curious psyche opened the lid, she fellnto a deathlike trance van dyck depicts the moment cupid diovers her and reacdown to wipe the sleep from her eyes. ilawake to fall in ve witpid and be raitoimmortitby . one of t most poignant ofall os is tieship