Crucifix
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Authors
Pietro Torrigiano, attributed to
Date
Type
image
Language
Keyword
Crucifix , Jesus , Cross
Alternative Title
Abstract
Scholars believe this painted wood Crucifix was an early work by Pietro Torrigiano, a sculptor who trained in the Giardino di San Marco in Florence and later worked in England and Spain. This sculpture is the only one made of wood that is attributed to Pietro, as most of his work is made in bronze, marble, and terracotta. The serene facial expression of Jesus, perhaps depicting the last moments of his life, complements his idealized, muscular body that is barely covered by a short blue loincloth. The hinges at Christ's shoulders suggest that the sculpture was used in re-enactments of Christ's Crucifixion, Entombment and Resurrection, but probably only in private, as opposed to public spaces, as the sculpture is small, roughly measuring an arm's length. There was a high demand for devotional crucifixes like this one in the period and many were based on larger-scale, venerated images. For instance, this Crucifix mimics a life-size sculpture made for the convent of Santa Maria a Ripa in Empoli. Today, Torrigiano's Crucifix is displayed in the Museo degli Innocenti in Florence. Photograph(s) licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Description
Museo degli Innocenti, Florence
Citation
Stefano Filipponi, Eleonora Mazzocchi, Ludovica Sebregondi, The Museo degli Innocenti (Florence: La Mandragora s.r.l., 2016), 187.