On-line gallery
- Reference number
- P01167
- Author
- Velázquez, Diego Rodríguez de Silva y (Spanish)
- Title
- Christ Crucified
- Chronology
- Ca. 1632
- Technique
- Support
- Measures
- 248 cm x 169 cm
- School
- Theme
- Shown
- Yes
- Entrance
- COLECCIONREAL
- Procedence
- Royal Collection
This serene representation of
Christ after death is of Apollonian
proportions. He is crucified with
four nails, in keeping with the
suggestion of the painter's teacher
and father-in-law, Francisco
Pacheco, who had created a similar
work on the same subject in 1614.
By placing he feet on a platform
and eliminating any spatial
reference, Velasquez accentuates
the feeling of solitude, silence
and rest, rather than the idea of
the torment of Christ's
Passion.
The influence of Greco-Roman
sculpture on the anatomy of Christ
indicates that this work was made
in the years directly following his
return from his first trip to
Italy, around 1631-1632.
This painting comes from the
sacristy of the convent of the
Benedictine nuns of the Incarnation
of Saint Placid in Madrid. Legend
has it that it was painted at the
behest of Felipe IV to expiate the
sacrilege of his falling in love
with a young nun.
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