Description
Duccio's Windsor Crucifixion Triptych is a small folding devotional painting made in the early fourteenth century. The central Crucifixion is flanked by scenes of the Annunciation, the Virgin and Child, Christ and Mary enthroned, and Saint Francis receiving the stigmata.
Duccio adjusted the painted architecture to compensate for the angled position of the wings, revealing a remarkable concern for how a picture is actually viewed. Saint Francis may indicate a Franciscan patron, although the commissioner is unknown. Prince Albert acquired the work in 1846, and its folding structure was restored in 1988. The triptych's small size does not make its narrative simple. Whoever opened it encountered the Crucified Christ at the centre, while the wings connected suffering with scenes of promise, incarnation and heavenly glory.
