The Lamentation of Christ (also known as Deposition) is an oil on canvas painting by the Italian Renaissance artist Correggio, dating from around 1524 and housed in the Galleria Nazionale of Parma, Italy.

Lamentation
Artist	Correggio
Year	c. 1524
Medium	Oil on canvas
Dimensions	157 cm × 182 cm (62 in × 72 in)
Location	Galleria Nazionale, Parma

History

The work is one of the canvasses commissioned by Parmesan noble Placido Del Bono for a chapel in the church of San Giovanni Evangelista in Parma. They are mentioned (although wrongly assigned to the city's cathedral) by late Renaissance art biographer Giorgio Vasari in the first edition of his Lives (1550).

Description

The work shows the common Lamentation of Christ theme, with Jesus depicted immediately after his deposition from the cross, surrounded by the people who loved him in life. They include John, who supports a Virgin Mary shattered by pain, Mary Magdalene crying at Jesus' feet and, in the background, Nicodemus with the pincer he used to remove Christ's nails. The composition was studied accurately to be watched from an oblique point of view, from the entrance of the Del Bono chapel in the church of San Giovanni Evangelista.

Sources

• Adani, Giuseppe (2007). Correggio pittore universale. Correggio: Silvana Editoriale.

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Deposition (Correggio).

External links

• Page at Correggio Art Home website (in Italian)