Shroud of Oviedo: Virgin Mary holds open shroud for Saint Peter and Saint Paul, from "The Passion of Christ"
Original title: Shroud of Oviedo: Virgin Mary holds open shroud for Saint Peter and Saint Paul, from "The Passion of Christ", after Dürer
kurzbeschreibung
This engraving by Marcantonio Raimondi, made between about 1500 and 1534, shows Mary holding up the sweat cloth bearing Christ's face for the apostles Peter and Paul. It belongs to a series based on woodcuts by Albrecht Dürer. The impression here is the second of three states.
Description
Mary commands attention at the center, lifting a cloth that displays Christ's head crowned with thorns. To her left stands Peter with his key, to her right Paul with his sword. Long robes in medieval cut wrap the figures, who line up in a symmetrical row. The lines are spare and precise; there is no color, and no shading has been applied.
Context
Raimondi took as his model a sheet from Dürer's Passion series, which reveals the closeness of Italian and German Renaissance art. Raimondi was known for his reproductive engravings, through which he spread the work of other artists. The period around 1500–34 falls in the years when he was active in Rome and Bologna. The Oviedo cloth was widely venerated as a relic in the Middle Ages.
Impact
The calm stance of the figures and their even arrangement create a solemn, collected mood. Because shading is absent, the print feels strongly graphic, almost like an icon, and repeatedly draws the eye back to the cloth in Mary's hands.
Technique
For this engraving, lines were cut into a metal plate and then printed on paper. The second of three states suggests that revisions or additions were made after the first. The process allows the narrow, exact lines typical of Raimondi's hand.
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Source: Metropolitan Museum of Art · Public Domain (CC0 1.0)