Artwork
Lamentation of Christ
Lamentation of Christ is an unspecified painting by the High Renaissance artist Andrea del Sarto. It dates from 1519 and is held in the collection of the Kunsthistorisches Museum.
About this work
Subject & Meaning
One angel, clad in green, supports the dead Christ's head, while the other, wearing orange, holds Mary's mantle and a reed topped with a reddish sponge.
The work depicts the Lamentation of Christ, focusing on the lifeless body of Jesus lying in the foreground. His form is shown from the right side with his head tilted back and mouth open, covered only by a light pink cloth. The composition centers on the Virgin Mary, dressed in black with a blue mantle and white veil, who is flanked by two angels.
One angel, clad in green, supports the dead Christ's head, while the other, wearing orange, holds Mary's mantle and a reed topped with a reddish sponge.
This arrangement emphasizes the psychological intensity and expressiveness of the figures rather than strict Renaissance symmetry. Through the close proximity of the scene and the use of contrasting colors, the painting invites the viewer to engage deeply with the grief and solemnity of the moment.
Technique & Style
The Lamentation of Christ is executed in oil on a wooden panel (tavola), measuring 99 cm in height and 120 cm in width, with an outer frame of 124.2 × 146.8 × 9.7 cm. The work is signed in the lower right corner with ‘AND.SAR.FLO.FAB.’. Stylistically, the painting emphasizes the expressive faces and psychological presence of the figures, presenting the scene in a close‑up view that heightens intimacy. A symmetrical arrangement of the Virgin, Christ and two angels is softened by a play of contrasting colors, green, orange, blue and pink, creating a vivid chromatic interplay that distinguishes it from more conventional Renaissance compositions.
History & Provenance
The Lamentation of Christ was painted by Andrea del Sarto around 1519–1520, likely commissioned for a Florentine context given its later presence in the basilica of the Santissima Annunziata.
By 1568 it was documented in the bedroom of Angelo Aretino in Florence by Giorgio Vasari. The panel appeared in Paris at the Hôtel Villeroy in 1622, then entered the Buckingham Collection in England by 1624, remaining there until sold in 1649. It surfaced in Prague by 1685 before entering the imperial collections in Vienna in 1733, where it has remained in the Kunsthistorisches Museum.
The Lamentation of Christ by Andrea del Sarto is held in the Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna, with inventory accession catalogued as GG_103.
The painting’s documented exhibition history begins with its presence in the camera of Angelo Aretino in the basilica of the Santissima Annunziata, Florence, noted by Giorgio Vasari in 1568. It later appeared in Paris at the Hôtel Villeroy in 1622, entered the Buckingham Collection in 1624, and was sold in 1649. By 1685 it was recorded in Prague before entering the imperial collections in Vienna in 1733, where it has remained in the Kunsthistorisches Museum to the present day.
Context
The Lamentation of Christ by Andrea del Sarto was created around 1519-1520 and originally documented in the Medici family's chapel at the Church of the Santissima Annunziata in Florence, as recorded by Giorgio Vasari in his 1568 Lives. The work later passed through private collections, including the Hotel Villeroy in Paris and the Buckingham family collection before being acquired by the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna in 1733. Art historians note its significance as an early example of devotional painting emphasizing emotional immediacy and psychological depth, particularly through its stark composition and use of color contrast to heighten the narrative of mourning.
The painting measures 99 cm in height and 120 cm in width unframed, reflecting the scale typical of Renaissance altarpieces intended for intimate contemplation.
Overview
Andrea del Sarto’s 1519 oil painting titled Lamentation of Christ presents a quiet, mournful tableau centered on the dead body of Jesus. The work is part of the collection of the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna and exemplifies the artist’s engagement with devotional subjects common in early sixteenth‑century Italian art.
Artist & collection
Artist
Andrea del Sarto was an Italian painter from Florence, whose career flourished during the High Renaissance and early Mannerism.
