Attributed to Gregorio di Lorenzo (circa 1436-1504) Italian, Florence, circa 1500

with Heim Gallery, London, 30 June 1972

London, Heim Gallery, Sculptures of the 15th & 16th Centuries. Summer
Exhibition 1972, 1972, no. 6

A. Bellandi, Gregorio di Lorenzo. Il maestro delle Madonne di marmo, Morbio Inferiore, 2010, p. 367, no. III.3.13

Overall the condition is good with minor dirt and wear to the surface consistent with age. The are a few losses to the roughly hewn edges, including to the top left corner. There is wear and possible restorations to the Virgin's nose. There is a filled hole to the Virgin's halo. There are slight losses to the ends of Christ's fingers on his proper right hand. There is a composite material to the underside, which is slightly unstable. There is minor veining consistent with material, including one next to Christ's proper left shoulder and to His proper left arm. There is dirt and wear to the velvet mount.
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The present relief takes its inspiration from contemporary Flemish art, a style adopted by Gregorio di Lorenzo in another pair of reliefs Uomo del dolore and la Vergine addolorata in the Staatliche Museum, Berlin (inv. nos. 3/68 and 4/68). The present composition is modelled on a painting by the Flemish artist Hans Memling, entitled The Man of Sorrows in the Arms of the Virgin, in the National Gallery, Melbourne (inv. no. 1335-3). In this work, Mary stands behind the upright body of her son; together they create a united vertical form. In both the painting and the present sculpture, Christ holds his arms slightly away from His upper body and the mood is characterised by emotional restraint, in contrast to other Pietàs, which tend to evoke a despairing mother with Her perished son.

The modelling of the present figure of Christ corresponds with other representations of Christ in Gregorio di Lorenzo’s oeuvre, distinguished by his pointed chin, high cheekbones, hollowed cheeks and heavy-lidded eyes, such as Cristo coronato di spine in the Museo Archeologico dell’Agro Falisco and his work of the same name in the Szépmüvészeti Múzeum, Budapest (see Bellandi, op. cit. nos. 193 and 207). There is also striking continuity throughout di Lorenzo’s body of work (particularly in his representations of Christ but also in his wider range of figures) in the slight turn of the head downwards and to one side (Bellandi, op. cit., nos. III.3.1-III.3.8 and III.3.10-III.3.13 ).

Where the present relief varies most notably from Memling's painting, is in the position of Mary, who places Her hands on Christ’s shoulders, rather than His waist, and looks in the same direction as Christ. The mirroring of their head gestures emphasises their physical similarity, with prominent cheekbones and sunken cheeks. This modelling is evident in other representations of older Virgins in the work of di Lorenzo, such as his Mater dolorosa.

RELATED LITERATURE
A. Bellandi, Gregorio di Lorenzo. Il maestro delle Madonne di marmo, Morbio Inferiore, 2010, pp. 213, 231 and 361-367, nos. 193 and 207, III.3.1-III.3.8 and III.3.10-III.3.13