Alessandro Algardi (Italian, 1598–1654)
Crucifix
INV-1823
Alessandro Algardi (Italian, 1598–1654)c. 1646
13th century17th Centurybronzelarge scale
Date
c. 1646
Medium
Bronze, wood with ebonizing and staining
Dimensions
188.9 × 75.6 cm (74 × 30 in.); Corpus: 77.5 × 59.2 cm (30 1/2 × 23 in.)
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Location
Chicago, IL
Credit
Alyce and Edwin DeCosta and Walter E. Heller Foundation Endowment; Mrs. J. Ward Thorne Fund; purchased with funds provided by Mr. and Mrs. Fred Krehbiel, Mr. and Mrs. John Jeffry Louis, III, and Harry A. Root
Bronze, wood with ebonizing and staining This expertly cast bronze is one of the finest surviving versions of a lost silver crucifix that Alessandro Algardi made for Pope Innocent X in 1646. Jesus’s expression displays the agonized emotion caused by his torture on the cross, yet his body appears graceful and idealized. The cross is made of stained and ebonized pearwood and appears to be original, with the drilled holes at the bottom most likely used to affix it on an altar.
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