Basilica Santa Croce

Hans Burgkmair the Elder was one of Augsburg's leading Renaissance painters, whose Italian travels brought a new classicism to South German art. This Basilica Santa Croce was created around 1504 and is now held at the Bavarian State Painting Collections. The tempera medium required careful preparation on a gessoed panel and a disciplined layering technique that produced precise, durable surfaces suited to the intricate detail expected of devotional painting. Such devotional panels served both liturgical contexts in churches and chapels and private devotional use in the homes of wealthy families who maintained personal altars and oratories.

Oil on panel with Burgkmair's characteristic blend of South German traditions and Italian Renaissance influences. The work demonstrates the artistic qualities characteristic of Hans Burgkmair the Elder's mature period.