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The Burial of Christ

1595
On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 620
Inside a dark cavern, dramatically lit by a torch, Christ’s limp but powerful body is about to be lowered into his tomb. Light on the horizon signals either sunset on his earthly life or sunrise in anticipation of a new beginning with his resurrection. This richly painted oil on copper was commissioned by a canon of the cathedral of San Pietro in Bologna as a gift to an important figure in Rome, but in the end the canon kept it and sent a copy by Guido Reni.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: The Burial of Christ
  • Artist: Annibale Carracci (Italian, Bologna 1560–1609 Rome)
  • Date: 1595
  • Medium: Oil on copper
  • Dimensions: 17 1/4 x 13 3/4 in. (43.8 x 34.9 cm)
  • Classification: Paintings
  • Credit Line: Purchase, Edwin L. Weisl Jr. Gift, 1998
  • Object Number: 1998.188
  • Curatorial Department: European Paintings

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