Two men nailing Christ to the cross before onlookers, from "The Passion of Christ"
Original title: Two men nailing Christ to the cross before onlookers, from "The Passion of Christ", after Dürer
kurzbeschreibung
An engraving by Marcantonio Raimondi, made between roughly 1500 and 1534, captures the moments before the Crucifixion: two men drive nails through Christ's body into the wood. This impression belongs to the third of three states and was printed in black and white only.
Description
Christ lies stretched across the crossbeam, surrounded by armed men, praying women, and onlookers standing near. His skin bears visible wounds. Trees and further figures in the distance watch what is happening. Everyone wears clothing of the period, and the image carries no color at all.
Context
The design goes back to an invention by Albrecht Dürer, likely from his Passion series. Raimondi built his career on engraving other artists' designs, and in doing so helped spread Dürer's imagery beyond Italy during the sixteenth century. This sheet dates from the years Raimondi was active in Italy, between 1500 and 1534.
Impact
The crowded chain of figures and the sharp contours give the sheet its tension without disturbing the calm of the action. Because only black and white were available, the contrasts of light and dark stand out and draw the eye to the nailing of hands and feet.
Technique
For an engraving, lines are cut into a metal plate with a burin. Three states survive from this plate; the present example comes from the third. Dense hatching and finely graded lines model the bodies and create a sense of spatial depth.
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Source: Metropolitan Museum of Art · Public Domain (CC0 1.0)