Gethsemane

Gethsemane — Christ's night prayer before his arrest — was a subject emphasising both his human anguish and his ultimate acceptance of the Passion, making it a crucial devotional image for contemplative religious orders. Dal Ponte's panel most likely formed part of a Passion cycle for a Florentine church or convent, placed in sequence with scenes of the betrayal, trial, and crucifixion. The sleeping disciples in the foreground provided a compositional anchor while amplifying Christ's solitude through contrast.

Dal Ponte stages the scene in a rocky garden with a tall olive tree silhouetted against a night sky rendered in deep ultramarine. The three sleeping disciples are disposed in overlapping horizontal poses in the foreground — a compositionally practical solution Dal Ponte reused across multiple Passion panels.