Christ on the Cross

Guariento di Arpo's Christ on the Cross (c. 1360) is a major work by the leading Paduan painter of the mid-Trecento. Guariento held the prestigious position of court painter to the Carrara lords of Padua and executed the monumental Paradise fresco in the Doge's Palace in Venice. His crucifixion panels synthesize Giottesque monumentality—learned from the Arena Chapel frescoes in his native Padua—with the refined decorative sensibility of the Venetian-Paduan Gothic tradition.

Egg tempera on gold-ground panel. Guariento's figure of Christ displays strong three-dimensional modeling derived from Giotto's example, while the decorative gold tooling and elegant proportions reflect the courtly refinement of Paduan taste.