Flesh and Fabric: New Light on a Crucifixion by Pietro Lorenzetti

At the top of a painting of a Crucifixion by Pietro Lorenzetti (c. 1280–1348), an angel holds in one hand an unfurled scroll and in the other a bloody tunic. Never previously noted, let alone explained, this unique combination of motifs provides the key to understanding the panel’s unusual imagery. It sheds fresh light on the complex nexus between art, piety, and theology in 14th-century Italy, in particular at Assisi—the site of the mother house of the Franciscan order, where the panel most likely was made. This talk integrates the results of the recent technical examination of the panel and related art-historical research.