The Raising of the Cross [center, left, and right panels]

The Master of the Starck Triptych (active c. 1480-1490) was an anonymous Netherlandish painter known for the devotional triptychs that make him one of the most distinctive painters of the late 15th-century Netherlandish tradition. The Raising of the Cross from c. 1480/1490 is a multi-panel altarpiece depicting the raising of Christ's cross in the devotional, detailed manner that distinguishes the Master's best work from the more accomplished painting of his contemporaries. The c. 1480/1490 date places this in the period when the Netherlandish tradition of detailed, devotional altarpiece painting was at its height, and the Master's manner connects him to the tradition of Hugo van der Goes and other late 15th-century Netherlandish painters.

The Raising of the Cross is important in the history of Netherlandish painting because it demonstrates the devotional, detailed manner of the late 15th-century Netherlandish altarpiece tradition. The tradition of detailed, devotional altarpiece painting—combining precise observation with religious feeling in multi-panel altarpieces—was one of the most important in Netherlandish art, and the c. 1480/1490 altarpiece shows this tradition at a high level of accomplishment.

The Raising of the Cross is the Master of the Starck Triptych's devotional altarpiece: a multi-panel altarpiece depicting the raising of Christ's cross in the detailed, devotional manner of the late 15th-century Netherlandish tradition. The c. 1480/1490 painting shows the Netherlandish altarpiece tradition at its height—precise observation combined with religious feeling.