Antique Crucifix With God The Father, The Virgin Mary, And Saint John

Crucifix (Christus Patiens) with God the Father, the Virgin Mary, and Saint John
In the style of 14th-century Tuscan painting

Tempera on wood

Height: 150 cm - Width: 99 cm

Non-invasive conservation restoration performed (see photo of the work before restoration for details)

Complete photographic details (Click HERE)

We present this precious antique crucifix, featuring God the Father bestowing a blessing in the cimas, the Sorrowful Virgin Mary, and Saint John at the side ends; the latter two, weeping, are the figures mentioned in the Gospels who were present at the foot of the cross and witnessed Jesus’ sacrifice; they thus hold significant value as witnesses and participants.
The work, a tempera on panel, is executed in the style of 14th-century Tuscan painting, adhering to its standards of quality and style.
The earliest painted crucifixes, created in Tuscany and Umbria in the 12th century, became the symbol of Christ’s sacrifice and thus an emblem of Christianity. While in this early phase the depiction of Christ was that of the *Christus Triumphans*—portrayed as triumphant over death—beginning in the mid-13th century, with the preaching of St. Francis of Assisi, who emphasized the human aspect of Christ, the model of the *Christus Pathiens* came to be preferred.
A key work of this genre is Giotto’s crucifix in Santa Maria Novella in Florence, not only for its quality but also for the depth of its meanings and symbolic values, making it a model for many of his followers.
Giotto eschews the beauty ennobled by the slender and geometrically perfect forms of the body—which, though divine, are implausible—to depict the body of an ordinary man, truly nailed to the cross and abandoned with all his physically visible weight.
The painter focuses on the realistic aspects of his condition, such as the color of the flesh, the blood, the ribs pressing against the skin, the stretched tendons of the arms, the head falling forward, and the sense of the body’s utter exhaustion.
As for the cross depicted here, we see a painting rendered according to the fourteenth-century canons introduced by Giotto himself: Christ’s head is bowed, and great attention is given to the anatomical depiction of the body. It is made of shaped planks of softwood; the painting is executed in tempera but reveals a refined quality in the blending of colors and the chiaroscuro effects.
The halo, as well as the background of the figures at the ends of the cross, is executed on a gold ground, which is also traditional; in this case, metal decorations are applied along the outline of the halo—a detail not typical of the Italian tradition but one that appears to reflect French Gothic taste.  

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:
Accompanied by a certificate of authenticity and a descriptive iconographic sheet.
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