Allegory of the Good and Bad Judge

Detail of one of the trumpeting angels in the upper panel

The composition comprises two panels, of apparently distinct but complementary narratives. In the upper scene, Christ as the Pantocrator in robes of red and with His feet resting on a globe with a Gothic caption reading "UROPA",[1] is flanked by two Prophets, each holding a phylactery twisted in the shape of the letters Alpha and Omega. He is also flanked by two trumpeting angels. The two panels are framed by a decorative Moorish-inspired bar, which makes it resemble an illumination. What seems to be traces of an heraldic device can be seen on each side of the painting, probably the arms of the House of Braganza or the royal coat of arms.[2]

The lower scene is the representation of a trial scene with two judges: the "Good Judge" to the left, and the "Bad Judge" to the right, both seated on wooden and richly-crafted Gothic thrones. The Good Judge is seated facing the viewer directly, wearing robes of great sobriety (a white houppelande over a dark doublet and matching cap), and holding steady the red staff of the old municipal courts;[1] he seems to be acquitting a man dressed in white. The Bad Judge, wearing showy robes of orange and a red fur-lined cap and holding a broken red staff, is depicted as having two faces and is approached by two men in the act of bribery: the man to the right (a rico homem) takes gold coins from a purse, and the man to the left (a villein) offers the judge a pair of partridges.[1]

While the Bad Judge's conduct is influenced by the Devil, who seems to be whispering in his ear and rests his claw on top of his shoulder, the Good Judge is being crowned by two angelic figures, Justice and Mercy, according to the medieval symbolism.[1] The scene is flanked by two corregedores, each beside each of the judges, and in matching clothes.[1]

The old Town Hall and Courthouse (the medieval domus municipalis) of the town of Monsaraz was first built around the second quarter of the 14th century, sometime during the reigns of King Dinis and Afonso IV. It was built as a result of the administrative and economic development of the village after it had been granted its first Charter in 1276. Until it was built, public acts were conducted in the churchyard of the Gothic Church of Santa Maria da Lagoa (demolished and later rebuilt in the 16th century).[1]

The corrupt judge being bribed is represented in a similar fashion in Hans Holbein's famous woodcut designs for his Danse Macabre series (1526).[3]

The old Town Hall seems to have been rebuilt several times since its initial construction, although several original medieval elements can still be identified, such as the pointed arch on the entrance, the twinned arch windows, and the ribbed vaults. In the late 15th or early 16th century, the structure was also modified to hold a public gaol, in accordance with the instructions of King John II.[1] It is unclear exactly when the fresco was mutilated; older authors have proposed it took place sometime during the reign of King Manuel I (r. 1495–1521), coinciding with the construction of a new dome,[2] but more recent critics find it unlikely that the figure of Jesus Christ and of the heraldic achievement of the powerful House of Braganza (which counted Monsaraz among its many dominions) would be deliberately defaced in the 16th century. Instead, it has since been proposed that the mutilation was instead caused by the 1755 Lisbon earthquake, which is known to have damaged the building.[4]

When it was rebuilt, what was left of the fresco (because it is possibly the remaining fraction of a larger composition[2]) was safeguarded behind a new wall constructed for this purpose. It remained hidden and forgotten until it was fortuitously discovered in the week of 6 to 11 October 1958 as the building, now the seat of the town's parish council, underwent works of repair and expansion.[1] From that date until 1997, the fresco was subject to a number of restoration interventions for the consolidation of the mortar and paint layers, cleaning, and removal of overpainting.[2]

In 1991, Lima de Freitas painted a modern version of The Good and the Bad Judge, for the Montemor-o-Novo Courthouse. Not only a visual homage, the painting is also inscribed with the words "An Homage to the Unknown Painter who, in 15th-century Monsaraz, painted the Good and the Bad Judge".[3]

The building was musealised with The Good and the Bad Judge as its main attraction, as the "Museum of the Fresco" (Museu do Fresco), unveiled on 13 July 2012.[5]

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