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Source Description
This double-sided painting originally functioned as a standard to be carried during processions and other religious ceremonies. It was probably made for the religious brotherhood (confraternity) devoted to Saint Michael in Matelica, a town in the Marches, a region in Central Italy. On one side is the Crucifixion with the mourning Virgin, the apostle John, and three angels catching Christ's blood in chalices. On the reverse, the archangel Michael tramples the devil and holds the scales in which he weighs a blessed soul. Kneeling at his feet are members of the brotherhood that commissioned the standard, clad in white habits with cowls, clothes typical of brotherhoods belonging to the Order of Flagellants (people who whip themselves to show penitence). Given their everyday use and occasional exposure to the elements, few processional standards from the Renaissance are still in existence today. This example is one of several by Lorenzo d’Alessandro da Sanseverino, who was active in and around Matelica during the last quarter of the 15th century. Another standard by the artist is now at the Brooklyn Museum in New York.
Scholar Source Context
Document identity
localId
40438
label
The Crucifixion; Saint Michael
core
obj
dtoType
drawing
citationUrl
pageCount
4
Source metadata
id
40438
sourceUrl
contentType
drawing
stage
normalized
title
The Crucifixion; Saint Michael
description
This double-sided painting originally functioned as a standard to be carried during processions and other religious ceremonies. It was probably made for the religious brotherhood (confraternity) devoted to Saint Michael in Matelica, a town in the Marches, a region in Central Italy. On one side is the Crucifixion with the mourning Virgin, the apostle John, and three angels catching Christ's blood in chalices. On the reverse, the archangel Michael tramples the devil and holds the scales in which he weighs a blessed soul. Kneeling at his feet are members of the brotherhood that commissioned the standard, clad in white habits with cowls, clothes typical of brotherhoods belonging to the Order of Flagellants (people who whip themselves to show penitence). Given their everyday use and occasional exposure to the elements, few processional standards from the Renaissance are still in existence today. This example is one of several by Lorenzo d’Alessandro da Sanseverino, who was active in and around Matelica during the last quarter of the 15th century. Another standard by the artist is now at the Brooklyn Museum in New York.
provenance
Bernard Berenson [date and mode of acquisition unknown]; Henry Walters, Baltimore, ca. 1915 [mode of acquisition unknown]; Walters Art Museum, 1931, by bequest.
date
ca. 1480-1490 (Renaissance)
citationUrl
rightsUri
CC0
language
en
genreSpecific
Painting & Drawing
paintings
standards (identifying artifacts)
imageCount
4
pageCount
4
source
import
dimensions
units
cm
width
75.9
height
54.3
depth
2.3
dimensionsRaw
H: 29 7/8 x W: 21 3/8 x Approx. D: 7/8 in. (75.9 x 54.3 x 2.3 cm); St. Michael painted surface H: 22 1/16 x W: 13 3/4 in. (56 x 34.9 cm); Crucifixion painted surface H: 21 15/16 x W: 13 3/4 in. (55.8 x 34.9 cm)
Source extras
inscriptions
[Transcription] On obverse with the Crucifixion
in Virgin's halo: MEMENTO [MEI MATER DEI]; [Translation] In Virgin's halo: Remember me
O Mother of God; [Transcription] In Christ's halo: [A]VE LUX M[UNDI]; [Translation] In Christ's halo: Hail
Light of the World; [Transcription] In St. John's halo: IOHANNES
med
tempera, oil, and gold leaf on wood panel
creator_ids
2410
collection_ids
REN
exhibition_ids
none
Page inventory
seq
1
type
photo
mediaId
5c928aa668c69acc
hasOcr
no
hasDescription
no
seq
2
type
photo
mediaId
dcffa19232e5d2c0
hasOcr
no
hasDescription
no
seq
3
type
photo
mediaId
1a66664f44e57b20
hasOcr
no
hasDescription
no
seq
4
type
photo
mediaId
877b305450f53db5
hasOcr
no
hasDescription
no