Christ With Bound Hands

Artist / Maker Christian Petersen (Danish - American, 1885 - 1961)

Date1950

OriginU.S.A.

MediumPainted Plaster

Dimensions39 x 8 1/2 x 10 in. (99.1 x 21.6 x 25.4 cm)

ClassificationsSculpture

Credit LineGift of the Estate of Reverend William Robert Merrill. In the Christian Petersen Art Collection, Christian Petersen Art Museum, University Museums, Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa.

Object numberUM99.299

Status

Not on view

Collections

CultureAmerican

Label TextFrom the University Museums Collections Handbook, vol. 2, 2025: Created in the aftermath of World War II, Christian Petersen’s Christ with Bound Hands is a painted, 39 in. tall plaster sculpture depicting a powerful, bare-chested Christ being judged before Pontius Pilate. His lower body is draped in a simple cloth, and his hands are bound by a rope before him. The figure’s muscular form contrasts with the fragile rope binding his hands, suggesting that Christ could easily overcome the forces of evil, yet He chooses to submit. The figure’s oversized hands, frequently seen in Petersen’s sculptures, evoke both physical power and a quiet strength to endure injustice, meanwhile, his powerful fists are clenched as if holding “atomic bombs,”12 representing the destructive forces of war. In a related drawing study,13 Petersen wrote the words “all the evils which have kept him prisoner,”14 a concept further emphasized by the binding of Christ’s hands. This sculpture, more than a religious icon, serves as a powerful commentary on the moral and spiritual challenges of the post-war world. The sculpture was later gifted by Petersen to Archbishop Rohlman of Dubuque, Iowa, who officiated Petersen’s midlife confirmation into the Catholic Church.15 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------The painted plaster sculpture is an image of Christ with his hands in front, tied with a rope. He wears a wrap around his lower body and his chest is bare. In August of 1945, Petersen talked to a reporter for the Iowa State Daily Student about a sculpture for which he had already made a model. It was to be a new concept of Christ that would portray Him as a masculine, powerful figure with a stern expression who stood with his hands tied by a rope. The idea was a representation of Christ “as he would appear on the earth surveying our present day humanity [and] views the wartorn world.” Petersen further explained to the student reporter about the overlarge hands of the figure: “It is as if he holds an atomic bomb in each fist.”

Published ReferencesAmes Daily Tribune, Sept. 29, 1950 listed as "Christ, the Judge"; Julegranen, 1947 listed as "Christ Before Pilate"; Omaha World-Herald (Omaha, Nebraska), July 7, 1968.

Locations