- The Circumcision (Signorelli)
-
The Circumcision Artist Luca Signorelli Year c. 1490-1491 Type Oil on panel transferred to canvas and then to panel Location National Gallery, London The Circumcision is a painting by the Italian Renaissance painter Luca Signorelli, housed in the National Gallery of London, United Kingdom, and dating to c. 1490-1491.
The work was executed for the altar of the Circumcision Chapel in the church of St. Francis at Volterra, where he was sojourning under the patronage of the House of Medici. Renaissance art historian and artist Giorgio Vasari saw the painting and described it as damaged by humidity, the Child having been repainted by Il Sodoma. The painting is in the National Gallery since its acquisition in 1882.
Contents
Description
The background is formed by a sumptuous niche with polychrome marbles, with two medallions portraying a Prophet and a Sibyl. It is perhaps a citation of the Brera Altarpiece by Signorelli's master, Piero della Francesca. Before it is the crowded scene taken from the Circumcision of Jesus[1]
The stripes on the garments of the man on the left were common in the time's fashion, and can be seen in several contemporary paintings, such as the Flagellation Banner by Signorelli himself.
References
- ^ Gospel of Luke, 2, 21-36
Sources
- Paolucci, Antonio (2004). "Luca Signorelli". Pittori del Rinascimento. Florence: Scala. ISBN 88-8117-099-X.
External links
Categories:- Signorelli paintings
- 1490s paintings
- Collections of the National Gallery, London
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.