Page 12 - Jacobello del Fiore - His Oeuvre and a Sumptuous Crucifixion
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pinker hue. Though the swooning Virgin is suits of armour, helms and chain mail worn
dressed in the customary red robe and dark by the soldiers, all made of silver leaf, now
blue cloak, now blackened by time, the browned by oxidation but originally far
clothes of the pious women who support her more brilliant and reflective - ( Fig. 3). Silver
body show highly refined colours: the leaf was also used for the tip of the lance
woman on the left wears a red robe under a held by Longinus and the hilt of the
pink-lined green cloak (the lining is visible as centurion’s sword; the iron mace, used by
it falls from her arm), and the woman on the him to indicate Christ’s body, is instead
right is robed in white, with a beautiful created with blue pigment. Here and there,
orange cloak. The Pharisees watching the pictorial techniques convey the quality of the
dice game on the right of the picture wear varied objects outlined against the gold, such
equally luminous colours, combining blues as the green lake glazing on the sponge held
and violets, yellow and light green, red and by Stephaton, or the tightly-arranged dots
orange - ( Fig. 2). that articulate the trumpet incised over the
background, which is blown by the man
Chromatic richness is accompanied by an behind Longinus.
extraordinary wealth of gilded highlights:
almost all the hems of the clothing are Conversely, the tooling often used for
decorated with shell gold, as is the decorating gold is used sparingly: the painter
inscription S.P.Q.R. (‘Senatus Populusque only uses small circular punchmarks along
Romanus’) on the body armour of the the edges of haloes. Generally, we see a
centurion and the floral motifs on Christ’s preference for brushwork over mechanical
rose-coloured robe, competed for by the articulation, and details are simulated by a
soldiers. Even the grey-pink city wall is most sensitive eye: for example, the two city
decorated with gilded patterns, now partly gates framing the scene, which are
consumed, but which appear to have attentively decorated with varicoloured
originally consisted of pomegranate-like panels and mouldings achieving, even in this
fruits. Thus, the panel’s gold background respect, a refined, elegant mise-en-scene.
appears to create dazzling echoes throughout Furthermore, as proved by new infra-red
the whole composition. The painstaking reflectography, the painting was planned
execution extends to the methodically- from the beginning as it was eventually
applied precious-metal laminations completed: with the most detailed
wherever needed – not only in the haloes, decorative effects. The artist executed a
made out of traditional gold leaf, but in the minute preparatory underdrawing for every
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