Sassetta / St. Francis Kneeling before Christ on the Cross / 1437-1444

Sassetta
St. Francis Kneeling before Christ on the Cross
1437-1444
View Larger Image

View Full Catalog Record Below

This image is one of over 108,000 from the AMICA Library (formerly The Art Museum Image Consortium Library- The AMICO Library™), a growing online collection of high-quality, digital art images from over 20 museums around the world. www.davidrumsey.com/amica offers subscriptions to this collection, the finest art image database available on the internet. EVERY image has full curatorial text and can be studied in depth by zooming into the smallest details from within the Image Workspace.

Preview the AMICA Library™ Public Collection in Luna Browser Now

Cultures and time periods represented range from contemporary art, to ancient Greek, Roman, and Egyptian works.
Types of works include paintings, drawings, watercolors, sculptures, costumes, jewelry, furniture, prints, photographs, textiles, decorative art, books and manuscripts.

Gain access to this incredible resource through either a monthly or a yearly subscription and search the entire collection from your desktop, compare multiple images side by side and zoom into the minute details of the images. Visit www.davidrumsey.com/amica for more information on the collection, click on the link below the revolving thumbnail to the right, or email us at amica@luna-img.com .

Creator Name: Sassetta
Creator Nationality: European; Southern European; Italian
Creator Role: Artist
Creator Dates/Places: 1392 - 1450
Gender: M
Creator Name-CRT: Sassetta
Title: St. Francis Kneeling before Christ on the Cross
Title Type: Primary
View: Full View
Creation Start Date: 1437
Creation End Date: 1444
Creation Date: 1437-1444
Object Type: Paintings
Materials and Techniques: tempera and gold on wood
Dimensions: Framed: 91cm x 46.5cm x 4.5cm, Unframed: 81cm x 40.2cm
AMICA Contributor: The Cleveland Museum of Art
Owner Location: Cleveland, Ohio, USA
ID Number: 1962.36
Credit Line: Mr. and Mrs. William H. Marlatt Fund
Rights: http://www.clemusart.com/museum/disclaim2.html
Provenance: S. Francesco, Borgo Sansepolcro (broken up c. 1578); Prince Johann Georg of Saxony (by 1936); Gerhard Freiherr von Preuschen, Stuttgart (1950); (P. Drey, New York)
Context: Because of his simplicity, piety, and devotion to all living creatures, St. Francis (1181-1226) has remained among the most revered and popular saints. Born to wealthy parents in Assisi, he first lived a life of spendthrift luxury. However, Francis later gave up all worldly goods and embraced existence of utter poverty. Throughout his adult life, the saint experienced mystical trances and visions of Christ.Atop the cross is a leafy tree and a nest of pelicans. Fifteenth century viewers would have recognized the tree as a reference to the cross, which is often described as a tree, symbolizing Christ's role as the source of eternal life. The pelican, shown nourishing it's young with its own blood, symbolizes Christ, who sacrifices himself for the salvation of mankind.This painting was the center pinnacle on the back of a double-sided altarpiece made for the church of San Francesco in Borgo Sansepolcro (near Arezzo). Below this panel was a scene of St. Francis in Glory (Villa I Tatti, Florence).
AMICA ID: CMA_.1962.36
AMICA Library Year: 2001
Media Metadata Rights: Copyright, The Cleveland Museum of Art

AMICA PUBLIC RIGHTS: a) Access to the materials is granted for personal and non-commercial use. b) A full educational license for non-commercial use is available from Cartography Associates at www.davidrumsey.com/amica/institution_subscribe.html c) Licensed users may continue their examination of additional materials provided by Cartography Associates, and d) commercial rights are available from the rights holder.