Dürer, Albrecht (1471-1528)
Salvator Mundi (Savior of the World)
c.1505
Oil on linden, 58.1 x 47 cm
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York
This picture of Christ as Savior of the World, who raises his right hand in blessing and in his left holds an orb representing the Earth, can be appreciated both as a painting and a drawing. Dürer, the premier artist of the German Renaissance, probably began this work shortly before he departed for Italy in 1505, but completed only the drapery. His unusually extensive and meticulous preparatory drawing on the panel is visible in the unfinished portions of Christ’s face and hands. (MET)