Rubens was well placed to take advantage of the increasing demand for scenes of Christ's Passion in the Southern Netherlands at the beginning of the 17th century. He had developed a reputation for his religious paintings in Italy, and his return to Antwerp coincided with the efforts of the Catholic Church to restore and replace altarpieces damaged by the Calvinists." "The experience of Italy had fostered Rubens's interest in both the historical and the human aspects of Christ's Passion. The strong influence of classical sculpture and of Titan, Michelangelo and Caravaggio is evident in the monumental quality of his compositions; but he also valued the emotional intensity of Northern masters like Rogier van der Weyden and Quentin Massys. He made many innovations to traditional representations in his concern for accuracy, especially in disputed subjects like the Elevation of the Cross. Rubens's success in transforming all these diverse influences to his own distinctive style is a tribute to his deeply held religious beliefs and his determination to give his viewers the sense of witnessing a moment in history. The images that Rubens created were appropriated throughout Europe.