Lamentation over the Dead Christ. Italian School. Early 16th century

Lamentation over the Dead Christ

Italian School

Early 16th century

Panel painting

Dimensions: 51 × 71 cm

The painting belongs to the artistic tradition shared in the early 16th century by Tuscany, Umbria and the Upper Lazio, where the iconography of the Lamentation and the Pietà found some of its most enduring formulations. Christ is supported by the Virgin and attended by Saint John and the holy women, whose poses reflect devotional models widely circulated at the turn of the century.

The figures’ restrained expressiveness recalls the language of Pietro Perugino (Città della Pieve, c. 1450 – Fontignano, 1523), grounded in balance and compositional clarity. The firmer modelling of Christ’s body, marked by a clear sense of weight and structure, reveals familiarity with Luca Signorelli’s approach to anatomy and corporeal presence.

Behind the figures, an idealised landscape, framed by rocky outcrops, opens onto distant views, extending the composition into a space of Renaissance equilibrium and harmony.

The panel was previously owned and presented by the Galleria Zabert, where it was identified as a work by Costantino di Jacopo Zelli. This identification is cited here as a historical and bibliographic reference and is approached with appropriate scholarly caution.

The painting is housed in a 19th-century frame in Renaissance style, well suited in scale and character to the work.