Crucifixion,

1330s

Jacopo del Casentino was a follower of Giotto, the so-called father of Renaissance art. This panel was purchased in Aquila, a center of preaching for the Franciscan saint Bernardino of Siena. The small figure of Saint Francis at the foot of the cross seems to have been added to a preexisting panel, perhaps when Franciscans took over a church. The man in red, at right, may be Saint Galgano, a nobleman who retreated to the wilderness—the prominent sword recalls that he thrust his weapon into a rock to make a cross. The bird on top of the cross refers to the medieval belief that mother pelicans nourish their young with their own blood, just as Christ shed his blood to redeem humanity. The removal of old, yellowed varnish has revealed original colors and previously obscured details, like the folds in the Virgin’s gown. The panel’s modern frame was removed at the same time, and the parts of the wooden support that would have been covered by the original frame have been left bare.