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Christ and the Adultress

Pedro Perret

1579

ink

paper

From the collection of National Gallery of Art

Renaissance Renaissance Religious

Dominant colour

Christ and the Adultress is a 1579 ink by Pedro Perret, a Renaissance work, held at National Gallery of Art.

Who painted this?: Pedro Perret
When & what style?: 1579 · Renaissance
Where can I see it?: National Gallery of Art

About this work

This scene shows a crowd of people gathered around a woman kneeling in the center. She looks down, clutching a stone, while a man in robes points at her. Behind them, others stand with hands on their chests or heads, some looking angry or shocked. The background is dark, with a few faint windows or doors. The woman’s posture and the crowd’s reaction suggest she’s being accused. The Latin text at the bottom hints at a biblical story, but the focus here is on the tense body language and the way the artist used lines to show emotion. Next, look up engraving to see how artists like Perret created detailed scenes with just lines.