Full title | The Baptism of Christ: Main Tier Central Panel |
---|---|
Artist | Niccolò di Pietro Gerini |
Artist dates | documented 1368; died probably 1415, certainly by 1427 |
Group | Baptism Altarpiece |
Date made | 1387 |
Medium and support | Egg tempera on wood |
Dimensions | 160 x 76 cm |
Inscription summary | Signed; Dated and inscribed |
Acquisition credit | Bought, 1857 |
Inventory number | NG579.1 |
Location | Not on display |
Collection | Main Collection |
It is rare to see images of the baptism of Christ at the centre of altarpieces and this is quite possibly the first example where it takes this position in Italian painting.
Christ stands in the centre of the river Jordan, naked but for a transparent loin cloth. He gazes directly at us, making a blessing gesture with the fingers of his right hand. The ease and stillness of Christ’s pose reinforces his majesty and authority in the centre of a scene full of movement. Saint John the Baptist reaches up on to his tiptoes to baptise him, pouring the river water over his head from a wooden bowl.
In the sky above, God the Father appears in the clouds, dispatching the Holy Ghost in the form of a dove towards Christ. Two angels on the left river bank look on – one holds a blue cloth with a gilded edge, ready to dry Christ.
Christ stands in the centre of the river Jordan, naked but for a transparent loin cloth. He gazes directly at us, making a blessing gesture with the fingers of his right hand. His graceful contrapposto pose – he rests his weight on his right leg, so his left leg is relaxed and slightly bent at the knee – recalls classical sculptures. The ease and stillness of his pose reinforces his majesty and authority in the centre of a scene full of movement.
Saint John the Baptist reaches up on to his tiptoes to baptise Christ, pouring the river water over his head from a wooden bowl. He has a pink robe over the camel-hair tunic that he wore, according to the Gospels, when he was preaching in the desert (Mark 1: 6).
In the sky above, God the Father appears in the clouds, sending the Holy Ghost in the form of a dove towards Christ. Just like the fish that swim around Christ’s feet the dove’s body is elegantly curved. Even the two trees that crown the craggy peaks on either side of Christ seem to lean inwards. Two angels on the left river bank look on – one holds a blue cloth with a gilded edge, ready to dry Christ.
It is rare to see images of the baptism of Christ at the centre of altarpieces and this is quite possibly the first example where it takes this position in Italian painting. The composition can be found in an earlier picture by Giovanni del Biondo, which is dated to 1365–70; the baptism of Christ is one of 11 narrative scenes that surround a full-length standing image of Saint John the Baptist crushing Herod (the King of the Jews who ordered his execution) under his feet. The painter might have got the idea for a large-scale image of the saint as a central panel from this picture.
Download a low-resolution copy of this image for personal use.
License and download a high-resolution image for reproductions up to A3 size from the National Gallery Picture Library.
License imageThis image is licensed for non-commercial use under a Creative Commons agreement.
Examples of non-commercial use are:
- Research, private study, or for internal circulation within an educational organisation (such as a school, college or university)
- Non-profit publications, personal websites, blogs, and social media
The image file is 800 pixels on the longest side.
As a charity, we depend upon the generosity of individuals to ensure the collection continues to engage and inspire. Help keep us free by making a donation today.
You must agree to the Creative Commons terms and conditions to download this image.
The Baptism of Christ: Main Tier Central Panel
Baptism Altarpiece
This altarpiece is the earliest known example that shows the baptism of Christ as the central image – in large multi-panelled altarpieces it was usually the Virgin and Child.
It was made for a chapel in Santa Maria degli Angeli, the Camaldolese monastery in Florence. The chapel was dedicated to the feast commemorating Saint John the Baptist’s death, but the central panel depicts the key moment in his life: when he baptised Christ in the river Jordan.
The inscription tells us that it was commissioned by one of the monastery’s monks, Don Filippo Nerone Stoldi, in memory of his mother. The monastery contained many altarpieces commissioned by Florentine families, which served as memorials. One of the monks’ duties was to say prayers for the souls of the dead on days specified by the families.
This altarpiece is the earliest known example to show the baptism of Christ as the central image; the Virgin and Child usually took this position in large multi-panelled altarpieces.
It was made for a chapel dedicated to the feast commemorating Saint John the Baptist’s death, in the infirmary of Santa Maria degli Angeli, the Camaldolese monastery in Florence. One of the monastery’s monks, Don Filippo Nerone Stoldi, commissioned it in memory of his mother, Monna Agnola (Angela), and his deceased relatives. The church contained several similar altarpieces which were privately commissioned, often by families of the monastery’s monks, which served as memorials. We know from the monastery’s records that one of the monks’ duties was to say prayers for the souls of the dead on days specified by the families.
Surviving documents reveal that the chapel was founded according to Angela’s wishes. She left money in her will for the foundation of the chapel and all its furnishings; the will also instructed that Mass should be said for her and her husband on 20 April as well as the feast day of the martyrdom of John the Baptist (29 August).
Although the chapel was dedicated to the saint’s martyrdom – he was killed on the orders of King Herod – the central panel depicts the key moment in his life: when he baptised Christ in the river Jordan. The gory moment of his decapitation was reserved for a small panel in the predella. We don’t know exactly why Angela chose Saint John the Baptist for her chapel. Perhaps her son was called Giovanni but changed his name to Filippo after becoming a monk or, more likely, because John the Baptist was the patron saint of Florence. There were two other chapels in the church that were dedicated to him.
The altarpiece was moved in the fifteenth century to the church of San Giovanni Decollato (literally meaning ‘Saint John decapitated’) in the town of Sasso, near Arezzo. The church had become a Camaldolese institution in 1414 when it was united with Santa Maria degli Angeli. The subject matter made it the ideal altarpiece to use as the church’s high altar.
It was probably originally much larger. The predella is missing a central scene and there might have been two more saints on the main tier– possibly Saint Michael the Archangel, in honour of Angela, and Saint Philip, in honour of her son.
At some point before it entered the National Gallery the uppermost panels that sat on top of the main tier were replaced with three small panels by Giovanni di Milano showing the Virgin Mary, Saint John the Baptist and the Apocalyptic Christ (Christ as the judge of mankind). These panels belonged to a different altarpiece altogether and they have now been removed and are displayed separately. Three panels by Niccolò di Pietro Gerini – including an image of the blessing Redeemer (Christ seated on the clouds), now in the Alte Pinakothek, Munich – have been identified as the original pictures that crowned the altarpiece.





More paintings by Niccolò di Pietro Gerini




