Corpus Christi (Christ on the Cross) Patinated and gilded bronze (partially gilded) 17th century Height: 31 cm A figure of Christ on the cross, the body alone, in bronze with a brown patina, enhanced with partial gilding. The naked, idealised body, with clearly defined musculature, is stretched out, the arms spread wide in a V-shape, the hands open and pierced. The head, tilted and turned, with the mouth slightly ajar, appears to depict Christ in his final moments or after death. The hair and beard, rendered in flowing locks, as well as the perizonium, draped and tied with a cord at the hip, are gilded and stand out against the brown of the body. This type of small bronze Christ figure, with gilding restricted to the hair, beard and perizonium, is part of the widespread European tradition of devotional corpus figures during the Baroque period, intended for altar or cabinet crucifixes. A 17th-century partially gilt bronze Corpus Christi.