Adoration of the Dead Christ with Saint Anthony of Padua, Saint Francis of Assisi and an angel Detail

The tondo is a copy of the painting by Giacinto Brandi with the same subject, dating back to the period between 1650 and 1670, commissioned by monsignor Onofrio Campori, marquis of Soliera (Modena). It was painted by the Viennese artist Daniel Seiter during his trip to Rome. The center of the composition is dominated by the lifeless body of Christ, reclining on a cumulus of clouds, lit up by a glare that accentuates the foreshortened view and the anatomical modelling. On the sides, the Franciscan saints and the weeping angels contribute to substantiating the drama of the Passion and emotionally engage the viewer through a process of empathy: each figure emerges almost tangibly from the dark background and is identified in the particular psychological state of affliction with their tear-streaked faces and especially touching gestural expressions.