Spanish, Catalonia
Crucified Christ (from a Descent from the Cross), about 1150
Painted wood , 111 x 94 cm (43 11/16 x 37 in.)
General admission for children 17 years and under is always free
This painted wood sculpture of crucified Jesus Christ is the size of a small child. His slender, angular, medium-light-skinned body is vertical, but his arms extend horizontally. He faces us, but his head is tilted slightly toward our left and downward and his eyes are closed. There are perforations in his head. At the end of his long face are a dark mustache and beard. His torso is bare, but he is wearing a loincloth that extends to his knees, which are bent slightly to your left. His calves and long toes dangle downward. Christ’s left arm, to our right, is stiffly outstretched upward, as though still attached to the cross, and his right arm, to our left, is lower and crooked at the elbow. The sculpture is worn, and much of the gold, red, and bluish-green paint has been lost. In the museum, the figure is mounted on a rectangular red and yellow fabric background.
Third Floor Stairhall and Stairway
Commentary
This immensely moving image, with remnants of original pigment visible in the beard, eyes, and loin cloth, has taken on even greater pathos through centuries of wear and damage, which echo Christ’s suffering on the cross.
The sculpture was originally part of a much larger ensemble that depicted the body of the dead Christ being lowered from the cross. A large number of such sculptural groups were produced in small hill towns in Catalonia, to the north of Barcelona. It appears that the creativity of a few sculptural workshops in the region encouraged the production of these dramatic depictions.
While nothing is known of the ensemble to which this figure belonged, similar groups were made to be displayed over the high altar of local community churches. With nearly life-size, naturalistically painted figures, such depictions — almost re-enactments — of Christ’s removal from the cross provided dramatic narratives for congregations.
Source: Eye of the Beholder, edited by Alan Chong et al. (Boston: ISGM and Beacon Press, 2003): 23.
The sculpture was originally part of a much larger ensemble that depicted the body of the dead Christ being lowered from the cross. A large number of such sculptural groups were produced in small hill towns in Catalonia, to the north of Barcelona. It appears that the creativity of a few sculptural workshops in the region encouraged the production of these dramatic depictions.
While nothing is known of the ensemble to which this figure belonged, similar groups were made to be displayed over the high altar of local community churches. With nearly life-size, naturalistically painted figures, such depictions — almost re-enactments — of Christ’s removal from the cross provided dramatic narratives for congregations.
Source: Eye of the Beholder, edited by Alan Chong et al. (Boston: ISGM and Beacon Press, 2003): 23.