Artwork
Descent from the Cross (Prado 1894)
Descent from the Cross (Prado 1894) is an oil painting by the High Renaissance artist Unknown. It dates from 1501 and is held in the collection of the Museo del Prado. Descent from the Cross is a painting executed in oil paint, depicting a pivotal scene from Christian iconography.
About this work
Technique & Style
The work is an oil painting on panel, measuring 200 cm in height by 263 cm in width. Its large scale and religious subject matter are characteristic of early sixteenth-century devotional imagery. As an anonymous painting dated to 1501, it reflects the stylistic conventions of its period while lacking definitive attribution to a known master.
History & Provenance
The work is held at the Museo del Prado in Madrid, where it is recorded under the inventory number P00968.
The work is held at the Museo del Prado in Madrid, where it is recorded under the inventory number P00968. It has been part of the museum's collection since its acquisition in 1894. The painting was exhibited in the Prado's annual exhibition of Spanish masters in 1900 and again in the 1995 retrospective "Spanish Golden Age: Masterpieces from the Prado," which traveled to the Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza.
Context
The painting Descent from the Cross (Prado 1894) entered the Museo del Prado collection in 1894, where it remains on display, and is recognized as an early sixteenth-century work attributed to an anonymous artist working in the religious painting genre. Executed in oil on panel around 1501, the 200 by 263 centimeter composition depicts the lowering of Christ’s body from the cross, reflecting devotional practices of the period and situating the work within the broader trajectory of Spanish religious art that preceded the Baroque era.
Overview
Descent from the Cross is a painting executed in oil paint, depicting a pivotal scene from Christian iconography.
Subject & Meaning
The painting shows the removal of a lifeless figure from a cross, surrounded by mourners in elaborate attire. A skull on the ground and a figure climbing the cross add to the narrative's context. The somber expressions of the figures convey a sense of sorrow and reverence.
Artist & collection
