
The Virgin, Saint John the Baptist, and Mary Magdalen weeping over Christ's dead body
Jusepe de Ribera (called Lo Spagnoletto)
An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art
The attribution of this etching is problematic. Traditionally attributed to Ribera by Bartsch, the print has more recently been excerpted from the artist's oeuvre. The composition of the print is loosely related to Ribera's painting of the same subject in the National Gallery, London (inv. no. NG235). Given the technical contrast with other prints by Ribera it is possible that this etching was executed by an unknown artist in his entourage after the painting, or preparatory drawings for it. For an impression of the etching in the correct orientation see 27.78.1(210)
Drawings and Prints
An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art
The Department’s vast collection of works on paper comprises approximately 21,000 drawings, 1.2 million prints, and 12,000 illustrated books created in Europe and the Americas from about 1400 to the present day. Since its foundation in 1916, the Department has been committed to collecting a wide range of works on paper, which includes both pieces that are incredibly rare and lauded for their aesthetic appeal, as well as material that is more popular, functional, and ephemeral. The broad scope of the department’s collecting encourages questions of connoisseurship as well as those pertaining to function and context, and demonstrates the vital role that prints, drawings, and illustrated books have played throughout history.