The early Renaissance masterpiece Pietà (also known as Dead Christ Supported by Angels, ca. 1470) by Giovanni Bellini (1424/26–1516) will be on view in the United States for the first time, on loan from the Museo della Città in Rimini, Italy. The presentation follows a comprehensive conservation treatment made possible by Venetian Heritage, Inc. The painting will be displayed in J. Pierpont Morgan’s Study within the Morgan’s historic library, alongside highlights of Morgan’s own Renaissance collection, including paintings by Hans Memling and Perugino and sculptures by Antonio Rossellino.
Bellini’s powerful and melancholic Pietà shows youthful angels contemplating the wounds of Christ’s dead body as they arrange it for veneration. In contrast to other versions of the subject, the angels in this painting do not wail uncontrollably; instead, the work’s poignancy derives from their sad, pensive preparation of Christ’s body.
Giovanni Bellini’s “Pietà” Restored is made possible by Venetian Heritage, Inc.
Giovanni Bellini (1424/26–1516), Pietà (also known as Dead Christ Supported by Angels) (ca. 1470). Photography by Matteo De Fina, courtesy of Museo della Città “Luigi Tonini,” Rimini.