Christ tied to the Column
1642 - 1644. Grey-brown wash, Pencil, Pencil ground on laid paper.Not on display
Three-quarters of Christ’s figure is depicted. He appears with his hands tied to the column and his torso bent forward from the waist as if the position of his hands had forced him to bend. The figure is isolated against a plain background with only the objects necessary for this iconography; the column and the rope binding the hands. Christ’s head is slightly raised, and he looks at the viewer from the expressive depth of his eyes.
The condition of this drawing is significantly impaired: it has several blurred areas, and the effect of the ink wash has been diminished. This damage weakens the shape and dilutes the facial expression. There is no doubt that the poor state of the image influenced Wethey’s rejection of the drawing. The emotion depicted in the work – the direct, poignant and sensual description of Christ’s humanity – recalls the Ecce Homo at the chapel of Congregación del Santo Cristo, San Ginés in Madrid, dated by Wethey to the 1630s.
Veliz, Zahira, Alonso Cano (1601-1667): dibujos, Santander, Fundación Marcelino Botín, 2009, p.176-177; nº 8
