reuniting the mattei caravaggios

This rare opportunity allows us to examine the visual synergy between the two compositions. Religious narratives are presented with cinematic drama and suspense, and as the figures appear to reach beyond the picture frame, their expressions and gestures echo and resonate together, joining the two compositions.  

In Rome, the Mattei Caravaggios only remained together for a short time, as within a few decades the Borghese family had acquired The Supper at Emmaus. It was sold, in 1801, and brought to England where, in 1839, it was presented to the National Gallery. The Taking of Christ remained in the Mattei collection until 1802, when, no longer attributed to Caravaggio, it entered a Scottish collection. Later given as a gift to the Jesuit Community, Leeson Street, Dublin, it was recognised as the Mattei Caravaggio in 1993. Since then it has been on loan to the National Gallery of Ireland. 

The Mattei Caravaggios depict two events in the story of Easter.  In The Taking of Christ, Judas Iscariot accompanies the soldiers sent to arrest Christ, whom he has identified with a kiss. Christ’s expression shows sorrow at his betrayal by a gesture that is usually associated with love, but will herald his Crucifixion and death. The figure holding the lantern, giving light to the scene, is a self-portrait of Caravaggio. 

About Caravaggio

One of the most outstanding artists in the history of painting, Michelangelo Merisi derives his name from the village of Caravaggio, near Milan, in northern Italy, where he spent his childhood. Around 1592, he arrived in Rome, at that time the artistic centre of the world.

Caravaggio’s work was strikingly original, using dramatic effects of light to create paintings of profound visual and emotional impact. His models were often people he encountered in the streets of Rome, and he painted them with adirectness and naturalism that makes them appear to embody the true-life experiences of ordinary people.

When Caravaggio was at the height of his fame he painted The Supper at Emmaus and The Taking of Christ. By 1606, however, he had to flee from Rome following a fatal stabbing. For the next four years, he found himself on the run for murder, moving between Naples, Malta and Sicily as he waited for a papal pardon. Some of Caravaggio’s most revolutionary paintings date from these years, and as his position became more desperate, his paintings became darker and more violent. Caravaggio died on his way back to Rome, before the arrival of the long awaited pardon.

In Conversation With...Anne Stewart & Aoife Brady

Senior Curator of Art, Anne Stewart, and Dr Aoife Brady, Curator of Italian and Spanish Art at National Gallery of Ireland discuss the significance of both Caravaggios, and the fascinating story of finding The Taking of Christ.