The Pietà, a view of Venice beyond

Several treatments of this subject by Palma Giovane are known, amongst which was the Pietà, signed and dated 1504, sold in these Rooms, 16 December 1998, lot 163. The present variant appears to be unique, in the context not only of Palma's other treatments of the subject but in all of his religious subjects, in the inclusion of a view of Venice in the background. Where in most other versions, Calvary can be seen in the distance, here the background is taken up by a view of the Bacino di San Marco. Quite what Palma intended by this remains unclear, as the circumstances of the commission remain at present unknown, but conceivably the picture was meant to impart a window-like effect, as also suggested by the placement of the figures on a balustrade.