Crucifixion with Four Saints, unknown maker from Italy

Exhibition Label:
"Giorgio Vasari and Court Culture in Late Renaissance Italy," Sep-2012, Sally Cornelison and Susan Earle
This 15th-century ivory triptych opens to reveal a central image of the Crucifixion flanked by four standing saints. Its small size indicates that it was likely a portable personal devotional item, used to remind the viewer of the importance of Christ’s sacrifice and saintly intercession. The ivory maintains traces of its original polychromy and has a gilded, starry background. The triangular registers at the top of each wing contain representations of the kneeling archangel Gabriel (left) and the seated Virgin Mary (right). This Annunciation scene illustrates the moment of Christ’s conception, while the Crucifixion depicts Christ’s death, thus bringing his life full circle. The theme of sacrifice is emphasized by the inclusion of the common medieval motif of the mother pelican tearing open her breast to nourish her offspring with her own blood, seen at the center of the triptych at the apex of Christ’s cross.