Artwork
Carrying the Cross
Carrying the Cross is a paint painting by the Early Renaissance artist Unknown. It dates from 1450 and is held in the collection of the Gemäldegalerie Berlin.
About this work
Overview
The work titled *Carrying the Cross* is a painted composition that presents a central figure bearing a wooden cross, surrounded by a small crowd. The scene is rendered against an unadorned backdrop, focusing attention on the interaction between the central figure and the surrounding participants.
Subject & Meaning
At the core of the image is a man clothed in a long robe, his head crowned with thorns, evocative of the biblical Passion narrative. Two attendants grasp his arm and the cross, while additional onlookers observe, suggesting a moment of collective witness to his suffering.
Technique & Style
The painting employs a realistic visual language, with careful modeling of garments and facial expressions that convey individual reactions. The plain background eliminates extraneous detail, allowing the artist to emphasize texture, light, and the emotional weight of the figures.
History & Provenance
Specific details regarding the artwork’s creation date, artist, and ownership history have not been recorded in the available sources, leaving its provenance presently undocumented.
Artist & collection
Domestic Scene
Giacomo and Cardinal Marco, investing Andrea, Abbot of San Zeno, with his Benefice
The Nymph of Fontainebleau
Portrait of a Woman
Madonna and Child with Saints in the Enclosed Garden
Venus and Minerva
Family Group of Four on Sofa
Wall painting from Room H of the Villa of P. Fannius Synistor at Boscoreale
