The Descent from the Cross

This panel and it’s companion, The Flight into Egypt, were originally part of a series of scenes from the life of Jesus that constitute Bernardino Butinone’s best-known works. The first painting depicts the Holy Family fleeing to Egypt as part of Mary and Joseph’s attempt to protect the newborn Jesus from being murdered by King Herod, who viewed the divine child as a threat to his power. The second painting shows Jesus’s body being lowered from the cross into the arms of his grieving mother and followers. Born in Treviglio in Lombardy in Northern Italy, Butinone worked primarily for patrons in and around Milan. His distinctive, eccentric style is characterized by expressive figures and highly imaginative descriptions of landscape settings.