Italian, circa 1500

The iconographic tradition of the Man of Sorrows flourished in the Veneto region during the Quattrocento and Cinquecento and was exemplified by representations of Christ standing upright in an open tomb and displaying His wounds. 

The present carving shares many similarities with painted depictions of the Man of Sorrows from the mid-15th century that were popularized by Venetian artists such as Antonio Vivarini and Michele Giambono (see Michele Giambono, The Man of Sorrows, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, acc. no. MMA 06.180). These examples portrayed Christ in half length with partially opened eyes and a downward gaze, a parted mouth, a lean and yet muscular torso, outstretched arms, and open palms that reveal His stigmata.

These representations depict a moment that transcends the boundaries of life and death, and was meant to prompt empathy for the intense suffering Christ endured for the salvation of humankind.¹

¹ Barcham, p. 194

RELATED LITERATURE:

William L. Barcham, ‘Six Panels by Michele Giambono, ‘pictor Sancti Marci’’ in Catherine R. Puglisi and William L. Barcham ed. New Perspectives on the Man of Sorrows, Princeton, 2013, pp. 191-218.