The Entombment
Relief
ca. 1555 (made)
ca. 1555 (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
Alabaster and Solnhofen stone are relatively soft materials, which can be easily carved with a knife. Marble, on the other hand, is a hard, fine-grained, crystalline stone, which has to be carved with chisels and a mallet. All can be polished with fine abrasive powders, with marble, in particular, taking a high polish. In Spain sculptors used alabaster from about 1300 onwards. The material came mainly from regional quarries.
The composition is based on an etching by the Italian artist Parmigianino (1503-1540). Italian sources were used relatively frequently in Spanish sculpture, particularly in the sixteenth and seventeenth century. This relief could have been part of a predella of a small altarpiece, or it may have been a small devotional piece in its own right.
The composition is based on an etching by the Italian artist Parmigianino (1503-1540). Italian sources were used relatively frequently in Spanish sculpture, particularly in the sixteenth and seventeenth century. This relief could have been part of a predella of a small altarpiece, or it may have been a small devotional piece in its own right.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Title | The Entombment (generic title) |
| Materials and techniques | Carved alabaster, with traces of colour and gilding |
| Brief description | Relief, alabaster, of the Etombment of Christ, with traces of colouring and gilding, workshop of Pedro Moreto, Spain (Zaragoza), ca.1555 |
| Physical description | Alabaster carved in low relief showing the body of Christ being lowered into a sarcophagus.In the foreground St. Mary Magdalene supports his body. To her left St. John, at Jesus' feet, supports the fainting Virgin. A man holding out the crown of thorns stands to her right with five other veiled figures in the background. |
| Dimensions |
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| Credit line | Purchased under the Bequest of Dr W. L. Hildburgh FSA |
| Object history | Bought from French & Company Inc, 978 Madison Avenue at 76th Street, New York 21, New York for 600 US Dollars. |
| Historical context | The composition is based on an engraving by Parmigianino. |
| Subjects depicted | |
| Summary | Alabaster and Solnhofen stone are relatively soft materials, which can be easily carved with a knife. Marble, on the other hand, is a hard, fine-grained, crystalline stone, which has to be carved with chisels and a mallet. All can be polished with fine abrasive powders, with marble, in particular, taking a high polish. In Spain sculptors used alabaster from about 1300 onwards. The material came mainly from regional quarries. The composition is based on an etching by the Italian artist Parmigianino (1503-1540). Italian sources were used relatively frequently in Spanish sculpture, particularly in the sixteenth and seventeenth century. This relief could have been part of a predella of a small altarpiece, or it may have been a small devotional piece in its own right. |
| Bibliographic references |
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| Collection | |
| Accession number | A.2-1965 |
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| Record created | January 15, 2004 |
| Record URL |
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