Pietà - Alabaster - Circa 1420

This magnificent alabaster Pietà is a production from the early 15th century. The sculpted group shows the dead Christ, lying on the legs of the Virgin. The Virgin is seated, her left hand firmly holds the head of her Son, while her right hand comes to rest delicately on her body. The Virgin's head is slightly leaning forward and hidden by a thick veil. Her fine eyes, discreetly half-open, betray the deep sadness of the Virgin. She is dressed in a mantle, the drapes of which, preciously executed, fall back on the sculpted base, characteristic of the Gothic period. As for Christ, his head is drooping, secured by the hand of the Virgin. The Holy Crown is placed on his long hair. The face of Christ seems peaceful, contrasting with the strong emotion of his Mother. His body is finely carved, the protruding ribs as well as the striking thinness of Christ are highlighted by the sculptor. The position of his left hand reveals the stigmata of Jesus. The lower part of the body is covered by a short perizonium, tied at the waist. Finally, Christ's right leg is missing. On the sculpted base, we note the presence of a bone, on the far right of the sculpture, as well as a skull, placed below Christ. Symbol of vanity, the skull represents mortality, the passing of time and judgment. As for the bone, it is associated with the abandonment of the fleshly envelope and the return to matter. Finally, under the sculpture is a hole suggesting its attachment to a larger structure, potentially a carved wooden altarpiece as is often found in 15th century Europe. It is possible to find a certain correspondence between this work and the statues of the Rimini altar, preserved at the Liebieghaus in Frankfurt. The Rimini altar, purchased by Georg Swarenzki for the Liebieghaus (Frankfurt), takes the form of a Crucifixion in which many characters intervene. In the central part we find Christ on the Cross, overlooking the two thieves, as well as Roman soldiers. These figures are accompanied by Longinus, the mourning Virgin, Saint John and the Twelve Apostles. Originally, the altar decorated the church of Santa Maria delle Grazie in Covignano, near Rimini, and was probably commissioned by Sigismondo Pandolfo Malatesta (Lord of Rimini), from an artist known as the Master of Rimini. According to recent research by Anton Legner, Paul Williamson, Monique Blanc and Kim Woods, the Master of Rimini can be assimilated to a sculptor active in the Southern Netherlands, between 1390 and 1450, possibly to Gillis de Backere, who worked at the court of Philip the Good. From what is known, the Rimini Master was a sculptor (or a group of sculptors) who supervised a workshop from the early 1420s to the mid-1440s, and whose works were exported mainly to Silesia, France, Italy and Savoy. He probably worked only on alabaster, and made several Pietà, all with an elaborate treatment of the draperies, and which show the anguished faces of the Virgin and her Son. More generally, the works of the Rimini Master are characterized by a certain angularity of the facial structure of the figures (the face wider at the temples than at the jaw, the chiselled cheeks, etc.), as well as by the concentrated mass of the folds of the draperies. The pietà that we present shares several of these formal characteristics, leading us to consider an attribution to the Rimini Master.