Christ Child Blessing [recto]; The Man of Sorrows [verso]

Christ Child Blessing [recto]; The Man of Sorrows [verso]

Title

Christ Child Blessing [recto]; The Man of Sorrows [verso]

[Cat. Prague 2007, No. 12]

Painting on limewood

Medium

Painting on limewood

[Klein Report, 08.04.2013]
[Cat. Prague 2007, No. 12]

Recto: the recto of the panel shows a full-length standing figure of the infant Christ against a black background on stony ground. The child wears a transparent shirt witha gold border. He supports a tau cross with his left hand. The base of the cross touches the ground and it

Recto: the recto of the panel shows a full-length standing figure of the infant Christ against a black background on stony ground. The child wears a transparent shirt witha gold border. He supports a tau cross with his left hand. The base of the cross touches the ground and it is inscribed with the initials 'INRI' and decorated with a crown of thorns. The child's head is circumscribed by golden rays; his right hand is raised in an attitude of blessing.

Verso: in contrast to the full-length figure on the recto the veso shows a close-up image of the Man of Sorrows. He holds rods and a whip in his crossed hands. His body is covered with blood and exhibits wounds on his hands and in his side. His head is crowned with thorns and he has a halo.

[Görres, cda 2014]

Attributions
Lucas Cranach the Elder and Workshop
Workshop Lucas Cranach the Elder

Attributions

Lucas Cranach the Elder and Workshop

[Cat. Prague 2007, No. 12]
[Exhib. Cat. Prague 2016, 76, No. 5]

Workshop Lucas Cranach the Elder

[Charmonikola 2005, 27]
[Cat. Prague 1962, XVII]

Lucas Cranach the Elder

[Cat. Prague 1988, No. 280]

Production dates
about 1520
about 1520 - 1525

Production dates

about 1520

[Cat. Prague 2007, No. 12]

about 1520 - 1525

[Exhib. Cat. Prague 2016, 76, No. 5]

Dimensions
Dimensions of support: 53.1 x 30.3 cm

Dimensions

  • Dimensions of support: 53.1 x 30.3 cm

  • [Cat. Prague 2007, No. 12]

Signature / Dating

None

Owner
Národní galerie v Praze (National Gallery in Prague)
Repository
Národní galerie v Praze (National Gallery in Prague)
Location
Prague
CDA ID
CZ_NGP_DO6574
FR (1978) Nr.
FR-none
Persistent Link
https://lucascranach.org/en/CZ_NGP_DO6574/

Provenance

  • 1953 acquired from the State Heritage Administration

[Cat. Prague 2007, No. 12]

Exhibitions

Prague 2016, No. 5

Literature

Reference on page Catalogue Number Figure / Plate
Exhib. Cat. Prague 2016 22, 23, 72-77 5 Figs. pp. 22, 23, 72, 73, 74
EditorOlga Kotková
TitleCranach. Ze všech stran. From all sides.
Place of PublicationPrague
Year of Publication2016
Pages16-180
Show Literature
Cat. Prague 2007 36-37 12
AuthorOlga Kotková
TitleNational Gallery in Prague. German and Austrian Painting of the 14th - 16th Centuries. Illustrated Summary Catalogue II/1
Place of PublicationPrague
Year of Publication2007
Show Literature
Chamonikola 2005 B 27 Fig. p. 27
AuthorKaliopi Chamonikola
TitleLucas Cranach a ceské zeme/ Lucas Cranach and the Czech Lands
Publicationin Kaliopi Chamonikola, ed., Pod znamením okrídleného hada. Lucas Cranach a ceské zeme, Under the winged Serpent, Lucas Cranach and the Czech Lands, Exhib. Prague 2005
Place of PublicationPrague
Year of Publication2005
Pages13-33 (6-15)
Show Literature
Exhib. Cat. Prague 2005 27
EditorObrazárna Pražského hradu, Kaliopi Chamonikola
TitlePod znamením okrídleného hada. Lucas Cranach a ceské zeme. Under the winged Serpent. Lucas Cranach and the Czech Land
Place of PublicationPrague
Year of Publication2005
Show Literature
Cat. Prague 1988 129 280
EditorJ. Mašín
TitleStaré evropské umení. Sbírky Národní galerie v Praze. Sternberský palác
Place of PublicationPrague
Year of Publication1988
Show Literature
Cat. Prague 1962 XVII
AuthorJaroslav Pešina
TitleAlt-deutsche Meister: Von Hans von Tübingen bis Dürer und Cranach
Place of PublicationPrague
Year of Publication1962
Show Literature
  • Christ Child Blessing [recto]; The Man of Sorrows [verso], about 1520

Images

Compare images
  • overall
  • overall
  • reverse
  • reverse
  • reverse
  • irr
  • detail

Documents

Technical studies

2016Technical examination / Scientific analysis

Support

- the limewood panel consists of 4-5 vertical boards and is 0.4 cm thick

Ground and Imprimatura

- a chalk/glue ground

- thin oil-based isolating layer

- reddish imprimatura containing lead white and some red lead applied over the underdrawing

Underdrawing

- freehand underdrawing with a brush and fluid black medium

- less readily visible on the reverse

Paint Layers and Gilding

- the modelling of volume is exceptionally delicate; the shading of the flesh paint was carried out with the addition of black; the lighter areas are painted with thicker paint; in some areas the lighter paint was stippled (right shoulder of the Man of Sorrows); the paint application is thinner in the shadows; details were added after the paint had dried

[Exhib. Cat. Prague 2016, 76, No. 5]

  • examined by Kristina Málková

06. 2014Technical examination / Scientific analysis

  • Infrared reflectography
  • irr

Underdrawing

DESCRIPTION

Tools/Materials:

- fluid, black medium and brush

Type/Ductus:

- freehand underdrawing (only occasionally visible)

- thin to slightly broader lines

Function:

- roughly binding for the final painted version; lines delineate contours and describe the facial features; no representation of volume

Deviations:

- minor alterations made during the painting process to clearly define form

INTERPRETATION

Attribution:

- not possible

The Man of Sorrows [Verso]

DESCRIPTION:

- an underdrawing is not readily visible (an underdrawing is indicated where the position of the index finger on the left hand was shifted slightly)

[Smith, Sandner, Heydenreich, cda 2014]

  • photographed by Gunnar Heydenreich
  • photographed by Ingo Sandner

08.04.2013Scientific analysis

  • Identification of wood species / Dendrochronology

Support

Identification of wood species: limewood

[Klein Report, 08.04.2013]

  • examined by Peter Klein

Conservation History

Date2013

Report kept in the restoration deparrtment archive, National Gallery Prague

  • conservation treatment by Kristina Málková

Citing from the Cranach Digital Archive

Entry with author
<author's name>, 'Christ Child Blessing [recto]; The Man of Sorrows [verso]', <title of document, data entry or image>. [<Date of document or image>], in: Cranach Digital Archive, https://lucascranach.org/en/CZ_NGP_DO6574/ (Accessed {{dateAccessed}})
Entry with no author
'Christ Child Blessing [recto]; The Man of Sorrows [verso]', <title of document, data entry or image>. [<Date of document, entry or image>], in: Cranach Digital Archive, https://lucascranach.org/en/CZ_NGP_DO6574/ (Accessed {{dateAccessed}})

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