The Deposition

Penicaud, Nardon Limoges Painted Enamels The Deposition Copper decorated with polychrome enamels and jewelling over silver (?) foil. Gilt-metal frame Thick, narrow rectangular plaque. Copper, enamelled in dark blue, turquoise, green, yellow, flesh pink, red, mulberry, pale brown, black, grey, and white, and gilded.The jewels and flower centres are foiled in silver ?The reverse has dark brown counter-enamel. Joseph of Aramathea stands on a ladder with his right arm over the tau Cross and round the body of Christ which he lowers into the arms of Nicodemus who stands on the right. On the left of the Cross, the Virgin Mary has sunk to her knees, and holds her hands together in prayer. Mary Magdalene (?) kneels beside her with her right arm around her shoulders. A skull and a bone lie at the foot of the Cross. The foreground on each side is scattered with jewelled flowers, and the sky is scattered with stars. Joseph of Aramathea is balding and bearded. He wears a short mulberry gown over a garment with long yellow sleeves, and blue boots. Christ wears a crown of thorns and a white loin cloth. His white body is tinged with pink and blood trickles from his brow, hands, side, and feet. Nicodemus has a short beard, and a yellow hat with a jewel on its upturned brim. He wears a dark blue and mulberry tunic (CHECK) with jewelling round the neckline, green tights and brown boots with jewelled tops. The Virgin wears a dark blue mantle over a white wimple and mulberry dress. Mary Magdalene has a turquoise jewelled cap over her pale brown hair. She wears a dark blue cloak over a mulberry dress. CHECK. The skull and bone are white and grey, and the flowers have white dotted petals around foiled centres. In a rectangular gilt-metal frame, probably of nineteenth century manufacture. It has two applied twisted stems with leaf terminals at the top and bottom and five on each the side. Limoges, France C.1520

Image data

• Accession Number: MAR.M.250-1912
• Photograph Copyright © The Fitzwilliam Museum
• Aperture: f/20.0
• Focal length: 50
• Camera: Canon EOS-1Ds Mark II
• Photographer name: Michael Jones
• Image height: 760 pixels
• Image width: 415 pixels
• Processed with: ACD Systems Digital Imaging
• Filesize: 62.07kB
• Exposure time: 1/10
• ISO Speed: 100
• Fnumber: 20/1
• Captured: 2008:01:09 19:24:09