Artwork
Entombment of Christ
Entombment of Christ is an oil painting by the Northern Renaissance artist Albrecht Altdorfer. It dates from 1518 and is held in the collection of the Kunsthistorisches Museum.
About this work
Subject & Meaning
As a work of religious art, the composition focuses on the moment of interment, illustrating the narrative of Christ's body being prepared for burial.
The painting depicts the entombment of Christ, a religious subject centered on the figure of Jesus Christ following his crucifixion. As a work of religious art, the composition focuses on the moment of interment, illustrating the narrative of Christ's body being prepared for burial. The scene serves to visualize this specific episode from the Passion of Christ, emphasizing the solemnity of the event within the tradition of Christian iconography.
Technique & Style
Albrecht Altdorfer's Entombment of Christ is executed in oil paint on a spruce panel, a support typical of early 16th-century German painting. The work is a small, vertically oriented panel measuring 70.5 cm in height by 37.3 cm in width, and it is classified as a religious painting within the collection of the Kunsthistorisches Museum. The narrow, elongated format suits the devotional subject, allowing the figures and landscape elements to be arranged in a compressed, vertical composition characteristic of Altdorfer's small-scale religious panels.
History & Provenance
Albrecht Altdorfer created the oil-on-spruce painting Entombment of Christ in 1518. The work measures 70.5 cm in height and 37.3 cm in width. While the specific commissioning patron and the detailed chain of ownership prior to its current home are not detailed in the provided records, the painting is currently held by the Kunsthistorisches Museum. The artwork depicts the entombment of Jesus Christ and is classified as a religious painting.
The painting is held in the Kunsthistorisches Museum, where it forms part of the museum's collection of religious works by Albrecht Altdorfer. According to the Wikidata record, the work is catalogued within that institution's holdings and is recorded with dimensions of 70.5 cm in height and 37.3 cm in width.
No accession number is provided in the available sources, and no specific exhibition history, loans, or display records are documented for this work beyond its current location at the Kunsthistorisches Museum.
Legacy
The Entombment of Christ established a lasting precedent for its emotive treatment of the subject, influencing Baroque artists who adopted its dramatic composition and heightened pathos. Its prominence in the Kunsthistorisches Museum collection ensured continued scholarly attention and reinforced its reputation as a seminal work in early Northern Renaissance religious painting. The painting's innovative use of perspective and naturalistic detail contributed to its enduring legacy in art historical discourse.
Overview
Entombment of Christ is a 1518 oil painting by Albrecht Altdorfer, a prominent German Renaissance artist and architect from Regensburg. The work exemplifies the Northern Renaissance style.
Artist & collection
Artist
Albrecht Altdorfer (c. 1480 – 12 February 1538) was a German painter, engraver and architect of the Renaissance working in Regensburg. Along with Lucas Cranach the Elder and Wolf Huber he is regarded to be the main…
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