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Source Description
This is one of four early masterpieces by Giovanni di Paolo in the Walters. It was originally part of a predella (paintings on the base of an altarpiece) in the chapel of the Malavolti family in the church of San Domenico in Siena. The main altar panel, dated 1426 and depicting the Virgin and Child flanked by saints, is in Italy. The predella panels show, chronologically, the Resurrection of Lazarus, the Way to Calvary, the Descent from the Cross, and the Entombment. Originally, an image of the Crucifixion (now in Germany) would have been in the center. Throughout his career, Giovanni di Paolo referred to the pictorial tradition of his native Siena that was rooted in Byzantine art and is characterized by, in particular, the gold ground and the stylized rock formations.For more information on these panels, please see Federico Zeri's 1976 catalogue no. 78a-d, pp. 116-121.
Scholar Source Context
Document identity
localId
21511
label
The Descent from the Cross
core
obj
dtoType
drawing
citationUrl
pageCount
1
Source metadata
id
21511
sourceUrl
contentType
drawing
stage
normalized
title
The Descent from the Cross
description
This is one of four early masterpieces by Giovanni di Paolo in the Walters. It was originally part of a predella (paintings on the base of an altarpiece) in the chapel of the Malavolti family in the church of San Domenico in Siena. The main altar panel, dated 1426 and depicting the Virgin and Child flanked by saints, is in Italy. The predella panels show, chronologically, the Resurrection of Lazarus, the Way to Calvary, the Descent from the Cross, and the Entombment. Originally, an image of the Crucifixion (now in Germany) would have been in the center. Throughout his career, Giovanni di Paolo referred to the pictorial tradition of his native Siena that was rooted in Byzantine art and is characterized by, in particular, the gold ground and the stylized rock formations.For more information on these panels, please see Federico Zeri's 1976 catalogue no. 78a-d, pp. 116-121.
provenance
The Church of San Domenico, Siena, 1426 [""Pecci-Paganucci"" altar until mid 16th century, ""Malavolti"" altar from the early 17th century, Refectory from the early 17th to perhaps the late 18th century]; Comm. Galgano Saracini, Siena, prior to 1819 [mode of acquisition unknown] [1819 catalogue, no. 1257-1260, as Duccio di Segna]; The Counts Chigi-Saracini, Siena [date and mode of acquisition unknown]; Luigi Grassi, Florence [date and mode of acquisition unknown]; Henry Walters, Baltimore, 1911 [mode of acquisition unknown]; Walters Art Museum, 1931, by bequest.
date
1426 (Renaissance)
citationUrl
rightsUri
CC0
language
en
genreSpecific
Painting & Drawing
predellas
altarpieces
panel paintings
imageCount
1
pageCount
1
source
import
dimensions
units
cm
width
40.4
height
43.8
depth
2
dimensionsRaw
Painted surface H: 15 7/8 x W: 17 1/4 x D: 13/16 in. (40.4 x 43.8 x 2 cm); Framed H: 18 3/8 x W: 19 3/4 x D: 2 5/8 in. (46.7 x 50.1 x 6.6 cm)
style
Gothic
Source extras
RelatedObjects
29964
med
tempera and gold leaf on panel
creator_ids
3338
collection_ids
REN
exhibition_ids
2079
Single page context
seq
1
pageIndex
0
type
photo
mediaId
54b1e4688d8f833e