The Entombment
Guercino
1656
- Medium
- Oil on canvas
- Dimensions
- 146.7 × 221.2 cm (57 3/4 × 87 1/16 in.); Framed: 172.7 × 247 × 8.9 cm (68 × 97 1/4 × 3 1/2 in.)
- Genre
- oil on canvas
- Museum
- Art Institute of Chicago
Styles
Tags
religionMary Magdaleneoil paintings (visual works)paintingpaintcrosscanvasJesusreligious figuresoil on canvasdeathmenoil paint (paint)painting (image making)17th Centurypainting techniquesItalianreligious scenesVirgin MaryChristian subjectswomenbiblicaloil paintingeuropean paintingfoliageChristianityBurial
About
Guercino’s career is unusually well documented, in part due to the survival of his account books, which reveal that he charged a set amount for each figure in a picture. According to the entry for this painting, the client wished to pay only for one full-length, one bust-length, and three half-length figures. Guercino’s moving composition attests to his resourcefulness in overcoming such restrictions. Christ and the attendant mourners are depicted with compelling restraint and in accord with the patron’s budget.
