Christ Washes the Disciples' Feet (Caracciolo) explained

Christ Washes the Disciples' Feet is a 1622 oil on canvas painting by Battistello Caracciolo for the church of the Certosa di San Martino in Naples, where it still hangs.[1] It is held to be one of the artist's masterpieces.[1]

History

Commissioned in April 1622 according to the allocation contract (which survives in Naples' state archives), it was hung on the left wall of the choir of the church that September[2] and later joined on the same wall by Ribera's The Last Supper.[3] It marked Caracciolo's triumphant return to Naples after a long absence, probably involving a visit to Rome, work in Genoa and a stay in Florence.

References

  1. Nicola Spinosa, Pittura del Seicento a Napoli - da Caravaggio a Massimo Stanzione, Napoli, Arte'm, 2008, pp. 177-178.
  2. J. Nicholas Napoli, The Ethics of Ornament in Early Modern Naples: Fashioning the Certosa di San Martino, Londra, 2015, p.159.
  3. Stefano Pierguidi, Il programma iconografico del coro della Certosa di San Martino: dal Cavalier d'Arpino a Massimo Stanzione, in Napoli Nobilissima, I, 2015, pp. 18-25.