The Last Judgement as Ordalium. Hans Memling’s Vision

Abstract

Hans Memling’s Last Judgement was created at the moment when the dominant form of legal proceedings over the whole European continent was that of ordo iudiciarius. This procedure was based on the principles drawn as far back as Roman law, that is why at present it is described as the Roman-Canonical procedure. It is surprising that the composition of the Last Judgement does not in any way refer to the said procedure, since the imagery of the Last Judgement over the centuries had been shaped on the basis of the solutions practiced in the earthly courts. However, ordo iudiciarius was too rigid and predictable. Its rules did not fit the idea of God’s immeasurable mercy. That is why the artist presented the Last Judgement as ordalium. In this procedure, in turn, God, in accordance with his nature, is not bound by anything, so he can bestow his grace in a sovereign way even upon those who do not deserve it.