Crucified Christ or Marsyas
Medium
Pen and brown ink, heightened with lead white (partially oxidized), on cream laid paper, squared in black chalk, laid down on ivory wove paper
Dimensions
36.9 × 25.6 cm (14 9/16 × 10 1/8 in.)
Classification
pen and ink drawings
Department
Prints and Drawings
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
82324
Art Historical Context
This poignant drawing, titled *Crucified Christ or Marsyas* and attributed to a follower of Michelangelo Buonarroti, dates to around 1585–95. Created in the late Mannerist period, it captures the dramatic musculature and emotional intensity characteristic of Michelangelo's style, even decades after the master's death in 1564. The ambiguous subject—possibly the crucified Christ or the mythological figure Marsyas, flayed alive by Apollo—reflects the Renaissance fascination with blending Christian iconography and classical myths, evoking themes of suffering and transcendence. Executed in pen and...