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Christ and Saint Veronica

Jacopo Palma il Giovane

  • Christ and Saint Veronica 2
  • Christ and Saint Veronica 3
Basic information
ID
Ж-1301
Author
Jacopo Palma il Giovane
Name
Christ and Saint Veronica
Country
Italy
Technique
oil painting
Material
canvas oil
Dimensions (height x width, cm)
50.2 x 71
Additionally
Type
painting
Genre
religious
Plot
Christ and Veronica Veil of Veronica Station of the Cross: "Veronica wipes the face of Jesus"
Provenance
the Lubomirski collection
Exposition
Potocki Palace
Information about author
Author
Jacopo Palma il Giovane
Artist's lifetime
1548–1628
Country
Italy
Biography
Jacopo Palma il Giovane (1548–1628) was a Venetian Mannerist School representative. He gained recognition in 1564 after painting a portrait of Duke Guidobaldo II of Urbino. The Duke was so impressed with the portrait that he took the young artist under his patronage. Initially, Palma remained in Urbino, where he made copies of works by Raphael and Titian. In 1567, the Duke sent Palma il Giovane to Rome for further studies, where the artist explored Vatican frescoes of Raphael and Michelangelo in the Sistine Chapel. In 1570, the painter returned to Venice and began working in Titian's studio, where he completed Titian's final work, "Pieta". The author mainly focused on biblical subjects and historical themes and rarely painted portraits.
Object description
The painting depicts Jesus Christ carrying a cross. Jesus is depicted wearing a crown of thorns and facing a woman holding a veil. None of the four canonical Gospels mentions Veronica and her veil. However, in the apocryphal Gospel of Nicodemus, the work of Eusebius of Caesarea, "Historia Ecclesiastica", there is a mention of Veronica, a woman from Jerusalem. When she saw Jesus carrying the cross to Golgotha, Veronica felt pity for him and offered her veil to wipe the blood and sweat from his face. The image of his face was imprinted on the veil, and later this relic became known as the "Veil of Veronica". The name Veronica is considered an anagram of the expression "true image" ("icona vera"). The scene illustrates the sixth of the fourteen Stations of the Cross. The Stations of the Cross tradition originated in the fifteenth century among the Franciscans and became widely practised by the Catholic Church. The rite involves people stopping at each of the fourteen images for prayer. Many artists have depicted the Stations of the Cross theme. The subject of Christ and Veronica is also found in the works of Titian, the teacher of Palma il Giovane.
Legal regulation
Borys Voznytskyi Lviv National Art Gallery

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