Master of the Orcagnesque Misericordia,
Crucifix
1370-75
Tempera on wood, gold ground
Metropolitan Museum of Art, gift of Samuel Kress, 27.231ab
In a medieval church a crucifix, usually large, is always displayed in the
sanctuary.
The raised area at the east end of the church building where the altar is placed.
This crucifix may have had that purpose, or it may have been a processional cross.
The top and bottom terminals picture two Franciscan saints: Anthony of Padua at the bottom and Francis of Assisi himself at the top, identifiable by the wound in his side to which he points. Each saint holds a Gospel book bound in the same red as the blood flowing from Christ's side.
The left and right terminals picture the Virgin Mary and St. John the Evangelist, the latter praying and the former gesturing to direct the viewer's attention to her dead son. Following an ancient tradition, she wears a red robe and a blue mantle with a star on the shoulder.
On the reverse side the terminals picture the four evangelists.
See detail of St. Anthony of Padua at the bottom.
Read more about Crosses and Crucifixes.
Read more about images of St. Francis of Assisi
Read more about images of St. Anthony of Padua
Photographed at the Metropolitan by Richard Stracke, shared under Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike license.