Crucifix
ca. 1450
Medium
Tempera on wood, gold ground
Dimensions
Overall, excluding peg at base, 15 5/8 x 13 7/8 in. (39.7 x 35.2 cm)
Classification
Paintings
Department
Robert Lehman Collection
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Robert Lehman Collection, 1975
Accession Number
1975.1.25
Tags
Art Historical Context
This exquisite *Crucifix* by Giovanni Antonio da Pesaro, dating to around 1450, exemplifies the devotional art of mid-15th-century Italy. Crafted in tempera on wood with a shimmering gold ground, the panel measures 15⅝ × 13⅞ inches and captures the Crucifixion of Christ in poignant, intimate scale ideal for private prayer or altar use. Housed in the Robert Lehman Collection at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, it reflects the Venetian region's blend of late Gothic elegance and emerging Renaissance naturalism. The gold ground, a hallmark of Italian panel painting, evokes a divine, otherworldly g...