Artwork
Lamentation of Christ
Lamentation of Christ is an unspecified painting by the Mannerist artist Marcello Venusti. It dates from 1547 and is held in the collection of the Bavarian State Painting Collections.
About this work
Subject & Meaning
The subdued palette and concentrated composition emphasize reverence and sorrow, aligning with Counter-Reformation aims to inspire pious reflection.
The work depicts the Lamentation of Christ, a standard subject in Christian art showing Christ’s body lowered from the cross and mourned by figures including the Virgin Mary, John the Evangelist, and other holy women. The scene centers on the dead Christ, whose pale body is the focal point, surrounded by sorrowful attendants.
Symbolically, the placement of Christ’s body on a stone slab refers to his future resurrection, while the mourners’ gestures, clasping hands, tears, and contemplative gazes, convey grief and meditation on mortality and redemption. The subdued palette and concentrated composition emphasize reverence and sorrow, aligning with Counter-Reformation aims to inspire pious reflection.
Technique & Style
Marcello Venusti's Lamentation of Christ, created in 1547, is executed as a painting on a support measuring 49 cm in height and 37 cm in width. The work functions as a religious art piece centered on the main subject of the Lamentation of Christ, depicting the figure of Jesus Christ. Currently held within the Alte Pinakothek as part of the Bavarian State Painting Collections, the piece adheres to the formal conventions of mid-16th-century religious imagery. The composition is defined by its intimate scale and specific devotional focus.
History & Provenance
The Lamentation of Christ by Marcello Venusti was created in 1547, according to the corpus record and the Wikidata entry, which gives an inception date of 1547-01-01. No information about the original commissioner or patron is recorded in the available sources.
The painting is now held by the Bavarian State Painting Collections and is located at the Alte Pinakothek in Munich. The sources do not document any earlier owners, intermediate custodians, or acquisition details, so the ownership chain before its arrival at the Bavarian State Painting Collections cannot be traced from the available evidence.
The painting is housed in the Alte Pinakothek, part of the Bavarian State Painting Collections in Munich, and has been exhibited there as part of its permanent display of Renaissance religious works.
The work measures 49 cm in height and 37 cm in width and was created in 1547.
Overview
Created in 1547, the Lamentation of Christ is an oil painting by the Roman Mannerist Marcello Venusti. The work portrays the biblical moment when Christ’s body is mourned after the Crucifixion. It is part of the collection of the Alte Pinakothek in Munich.
Artist & collection
Artist
Marcello Venusti (1512 – 15 October 1579) was an Italian Mannerist painter active in Rome in the mid-16th century.
