Christ at the Column

Alessandro Algardi

National Gallery of Art

A bearded man wearing only a cloth tied around his hips bends toward a short column with his hands behind his back in this freestanding, silver sculpture. In this photograph, the man’s muscular body faces us, but his head turns sharply to the left as he looks down. A flat, starburst-like gold halo sits atop his long hair, which is pulled back to the nape of his neck. The black column is to our left, and it disappears behind the man’s hip. The tall pedestal has molding and decorative ornaments around a window on the front face. Material inside looks like tiny, fine chain links or a similar substance. The silver of the man’s body gleams with tones of muted pink and pale, slate blue where the light falls, especially across his chest and hips. The sculpture is photographed in front of a pale gray background.