Artwork
Massacre of the Innocents
Massacre of the Innocents is an oil painting by Carlo Arienti. It dates from 1842 and is held in the collection of the Kunsthistorisches Museum.
About this work
Subject & Meaning
The large-scale canvas, measuring 217 cm in height and 196 cm in width, is held in the Belvedere of the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna.
Carlo Arienti's painting depicts the Massacre of the Innocents, the biblical episode in which Herod ordered the killing of young children in Bethlehem, an event recounted in the Gospel of Matthew. The work belongs to the genre of religious art and centers on the slaughter of children, with the Wikidata entry listing the figures depicted as children and a massacre. By taking up this New Testament subject, the painting engages with a long-standing theme in Christian art that served both as a meditation on the suffering of the innocent and as a typological foreshadowing of Christ's own Passion.
The large-scale canvas, measuring 217 cm in height and 196 cm in width, is held in the Belvedere of the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna.
Technique & Style
Carlo Arienti’s Massacre of the Innocents is an oil painting on canvas executed in 1842, measuring 217 cm in height and 196 cm in width.
The handling emphasizes dramatic narrative through tightly grouped figures arranged in shallow space, with strong chiaroscuro heightening emotional intensity. Flesh tones are modeled with thick, directional brushwork that contours musculature and drapery, while the background recedes with darker glazes to focus attention on the central violence. The composition’s closed, pyramidal arrangement channels the viewer’s gaze toward the vulnerable child at the apex, reinforcing the scene’s urgency.
History & Provenance
Carlo Arienti's 1842 oil painting Massacre of the Innocents is held in the collection of the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna, specifically within the Belvedere location. The work, which depicts the biblical massacre scene, measures 217 cm in height and 196 cm in width. The provided sources do not contain a specific inventory or accession number for this piece, nor do they list any exhibition history.
Overview
The Massacre of the Innocents is a 1842 oil painting by Carlo Arienti, an Italian artist known for historical and biblical subjects.
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Artist & collection
Artist
Carlo Arienti (21 July 1801, Arcore – 21 March 1873, Bologna) was an Italian painter; known primarily for historical and Biblical scenes.
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