Description
Lamentation over the Dead Christ (Milan) was painted by Sandro Botticelli between 1490 and 1495: the Virgin faints with her dead son across her lap, Saint John holds her head, the three Marys grieve around them, and above them all Joseph of Arimathea lifts the crown of thorns and the nails. The original, tempera on a wooden panel of 107 x 71 cm, belongs to the Museo Poldi Pezzoli in Milan. Our painter hand-paints it for you in oil on canvas in 6 portrait sizes from 42 x 65 to 100 x 155 cm, or to a custom size. Before the Lamentation leaves us, you receive a photograph of the finished work.
| Title: | Lamentation over the Dead Christ (Milan) |
| Other titles: | Compianto sul Cristo morto (Italian title) · Objokovanje mrtvega Kristusa (Slovene title) |
| Painter: | Sandro Botticelli (c. 1445–1510) |
| Year painted: | 1490–1495 |
| Original size: | 107 cm x 71 cm (height x width) |
| Original technique: | Tempera on panel |
| Painting style: | Early Renaissance |
| Located at: | Museo Poldi Pezzoli, Milan, Italy |
| Our reproduction: | Hand-painted in oil on canvas, 6 sizes or made to measure |
Lamentation over the Dead Christ (Milan) – Sandro Botticelli
What does the Milan Lamentation show?
The picture is tall and narrow. A dark rock tomb, framed by stone jambs and a heavy lintel, closes the background. In front of it the figures crowd into one dense group that rises like a pyramid.
At the top stands the grey-haired Joseph of Arimathea in an orange robe with a gold-patterned collar. He raises the crown of thorns and three nails, wrapped in a transparent veil, and looks to the sky. Below him Saint John, in a red cloak, bends over Mary and cups her face.
Mary, in a dark mantle and white veil, sits with closed eyes as if unconscious. Across her knees lies Christ’s pale body on a striped white sheet, a narrow cloth round his hips; beside his mother he looks strikingly small, his head fallen back.
On the right a woman in a white veil holds Christ’s head; on the left another, wrapped in grey, hides her face. At bottom left Mary Magdalene, in red with loose hair, presses his feet to her cheek. Nearly every eye is closed under fine rayed haloes.
What does the scene of mourning mean?
The Lamentation is the moment of the Passion between the Deposition from the cross and the Entombment, when those closest to Jesus gather round his body.
At its heart is a Pietà, Italian for “pity”: Mary with her dead son on her lap, set upright and painted broader, as though seen through a wide-angle lens.
By tradition Joseph of Arimathea helped take Jesus down from the cross. The crown and nails he lifts are the instruments of the Passion; his upward gaze is read as a question put to heaven about this death.
The closed eyes matter too: the mourners cannot bear to look at the dead body.
Why is it counted among Botticelli’s most moving works?
It is one of the most dramatic compositions Botticelli ever made. The bodies are pressed so close that their outlines fuse into a compact block, topped by the upright figure of Joseph.
The poses are twisted and stretched. Botticelli sets aside the rules of naturalism here in favour of his own preference for geometry. Strong, contrasting, almost entirely primary colours, red, dark blue and orange, heighten the expression.
The panel belongs to Botticelli’s late period, when he turned from mythology to grave religious subjects. Scholars often link this shift to the preacher Girolamo Savonarola, though how strong his influence was remains open.
A short description of the painting and its figures is given in the English-language Wikipedia article.
Where is the original, and how did it reach Milan?
Around 1870 to 1875 the panel surfaced in the collection of Gian Giacomo Poldi Pezzoli, late in his life; today it hangs in the Milan museum named after him.
It first stood in the Florentine church of Santa Maria Maggiore. Its upright format comes from being painted for the side of a pillar, like Botticelli’s Saint Sebastian of 1474 in the same church. Giorgio Vasari called it a very beautiful Pietà with small figures, beside the Panciatichi chapel.
The altar was founded by Antonio Cioni; the painting was probably commissioned by his son Donato d’Antonio, though some scholars doubt it. When the altar was demolished in 1629, the panel went to the sacristy, where Giuseppe Richa saw it in the mid-18th century.
M. Pellicioli restored it in 1951; a new restoration by the Opificio delle Pietre Dure in Florence in 2014 brought back Botticelli’s cool, pearly tone.
The Milan Lamentation or another Botticelli?
Botticelli painted this subject twice. The other version, from about 1492, is in the Alte Pinakothek in Munich, and you will find it with us as Lamentation over the Dead Christ. The Milan panel is markedly upright, its figures stacked one above another in a steep pyramid crowned by Joseph.
This canvas painting suits buyers who want a serious, contemplative religious work. Its narrow shape fits between two windows or in a hallway.
Among the late religious works is also The Mystical Nativity, a small, very personal painting from the end of 1500 and the only one Botticelli dated. From about the same years comes The Annunciation (Glasgow), a little panel with the angel and Mary in a stone hall.
More famous Botticelli paintings, from Madonnas to mythologies, are gathered on our Sandro Botticelli page.
How do we hand-paint the Lamentation over the Dead Christ?
Botticelli painted the original in tempera on a wooden panel 107 cm high and 71 cm wide, not in oil. Our Sandro Botticelli reproduction is made in oil on canvas, layer by layer, so it can travel rolled, stretched on a stretcher bar or framed.
The painter first draws the pyramid of bodies, from Magdalene’s hair to Joseph’s raised hands, and the dark mouth of the tomb. Then come the large areas of colour: John’s red, Mary’s dark mantle, Joseph’s orange robe and the women’s green and grey cloaks.
Last come the closed eyes, the hands, the transparent veils and the thin rays of the haloes.
Which size suits which wall?
In short: the smaller sizes for a narrow wall or hallway, the middle ones above a chest of drawers or bed, the two largest for a tall wall in a living room or stairwell.
We paint Lamentation over the Dead Christ (Milan) in 6 portrait sizes (width x height): 42 x 65, 48 x 75, 64 x 95, 70 x 110, 90 x 135 and 100 x 155 cm. The original measures 71 x 107 cm (width x height): sizes up to 64 x 95 cm are smaller than it, 70 x 110 cm is about the same, and 90 x 135 and 100 x 155 cm are larger than the panel in Milan.
At 42 x 65 or 48 x 75 cm it suits a bedroom or the space between two windows. As a painting for the living room it comes into its own from 70 x 110 cm upwards.
Can I order another size, and which frame should I choose?
Yes. For a different proportion we keep the mourners whole and adjust the stone jambs, background or ground. In any size this oil painting reproduction stays built around Mary and Christ. Send us your custom size and we will reply with a price and a delivery time.
Our workshop in Slovenia does the stretching and framing and packs the painting with care. The moulding for the Lamentation is chosen in our 3D app, while a view of it on your own wall is a separate service. Dark wood or antique gilt suits its deep tones.
When will your Lamentation arrive?
Your Lamentation is ready to ship 15 to 45 working days after we confirm the order; once it is finished, we send you a photograph and make any changes before packing.
Within Slovenia and the rest of the EU the Milan Pietà travels to you without customs, and every order is covered by our returns policy.
It makes a fine Easter gift. If the right size for a friend’s wall is unclear, give a gift voucher and leave the choice of painting to them.
Frequently asked questions
Where can I see the original?
In the Museo Poldi Pezzoli in Milan, where the 107 x 71 cm tempera panel hangs.
What is the man at the top holding?
That is Joseph of Arimathea with the crown of thorns and three nails.
Is it a print?
No. It is a hand-painted copy: our painter builds every face and fold of the Lamentation with a brush.
How big is the original?
107 cm high and 71 cm wide; our 70 x 110 cm size is the closest to it.
Can the Milan Lamentation be painted in a size not listed here?
Yes. Tell us the width and height and we will send you a price and a lead time.
How long does it take, and how is it shipped?
Allow 15 to 45 working days; the Lamentation then arrives rolled, stretched or framed.
Is this Pietà suitable for a bedroom or as a gift?
Yes, especially as an Easter gift; the upright format fills a narrow wall well.
How does it differ from the Munich Lamentation?
The Milan version is upright, its figures stacked in a steep pyramid; the Munich panel dates from about 1492.
- Subject: the fainting Virgin with the dead Christ, Saint John, the three Marys and Joseph of Arimathea with the crown of thorns.
- Original: tempera on panel, 1490–1495, 107 x 71 cm, Museo Poldi Pezzoli, Milan.
- Ours: hand-painted in oil on canvas, 6 portrait sizes from 42 x 65 to 100 x 155 cm, or made to measure.
- Worth knowing: it was painted for a pillar in the Florentine church of Santa Maria Maggiore, hence its tall, narrow shape.
