Trinity with Saints Bernardino and Donato

Abstract

Andrea della Robbia made this glazed terracotta altarpiece for the confraternity of the Misericordia, and it was kept in Santissima Trinità also known as the Chiesa della Misericordia) in Arezzo until it was moved to its current location in the Cathedral of Arezzo in 1811. Members of the confraternity are shown devoutly praying, wearing the hoods that kept their identities private, in the predella. The composition is a variation on Andrea's slightly earlier Crucifixion altarpiece in La Verna. Both use a varied palette, portraying Christ's body as greenish, his hair auburn, and the cross beige (possibly with originally red blood painted on top of the glaze, as the Della Robbia never found a reliable red glaze). This contrasts with Luca della Robbia's more strictly blue and white Crucifixion in Impruneta. Photograph(s) licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.