Dead Christ with Angels

Unusually executed on paper rather than canvas or panel, this 1617 Dead Christ with Angels at the National Galleries of Scotland may have been a preparatory modello or an autonomous devotional work in a more intimate format. The dead Christ surrounded by mourning angels — the Pietà's celestial variant without the Virgin — was among the most concentrated of Passion images, presenting the moment of deepest human grief and theological mystery simultaneously. Procaccini painted this subject multiple times in different media, suggesting its particular spiritual resonance for him. The paper support, if it is a large-scale drawing with colour, would place this among a tradition of coloured paper devotional works common in north Italian workshops. The National Galleries of Scotland acquired this through the art market as representative of Procaccini's facility across media.

Working on paper required Procaccini to adjust his technique — likely using oil on paper or distemper, with the surface receiving preparatory sizing. The paper's tooth would give the work a slightly different texture from canvas. Colour likely centres on the pale, cool flesh of the dead Christ contrasting with the warmer tones of the attending angels.