The Crucifixion

The Crucifixion unfolds like a panorama, with incidental details inserted throughout the length of the composition. On the far left, the grieving Virgin Mary has fainted. Roman soldiers on horseback examine the contorted bodies of the crucified thieves. A stone-faced, diminutive Longinus stands at the base of the Holy Cross, ready to pierce Jesus’ side with his spear. On the right, soldiers gamble for Jesus’s clothes.

This painting is a variation of Andrea Mantegna's Crucifixion, now in the Louvre, Paris. The Louvre panel originally belonged to a major altarpiece executed by Mantegna in 1457–59 for the church of San Zeno in Verona. The anonymous artist of the Capodimonte crucifixion likely came from that city or nearby Padua. The striations of the rock within the landscape are a hallmark of Mantegna's ultra crisp technique.