The Body of the Dead Christ in the Tomb

The Body of the Dead Christ in the Tomb (1520s) by Hans Holbein the Younger. Its palette is led by dark umber (#3d311e, 23%) and amber brown (#88705d, 22%). Overall the canvas is mid-toned, muted and warm.

Color reading

Brown covers more than two-thirds of the canvas. Even its most colorful tone, dark golden umber #594529, stays close to gray.

Palette

#3d311e MG 186 dark umber 23.1% of canvas
#88705d MG 166 amber brown 21.5% of canvas
#0f0e0c MG 223 soot 20.3% of canvas
#9b8978 MG 165 amber brown 17.6% of canvas
#594529 MG 185 dark golden umber 17.5% of canvas

Color families

Brown 70%, Black 27%, Gray 2%, Orange 1%

Measurements

Lightness: 0.41
Contrast: 0.51
Vividness: 0.029
Warmth: +1.00
Complexity: 157 cells
Hue range: 0.30
Focus: 0.21

Composition

50% of the visual weight is in the left half, 56% in the lower half. Symmetry 0.16 (how closely its shapes and edges mirror each other). 2% of the canvas is calm space. Half of the detail sits in 39% of the canvas. Measured from the image, not a rule the painter followed.

Details

Date: 1520s
Medium: Oil on panel
Size: 30.5 × 200.0 cm
Genre: religious art
Collection: Kunstmuseum Basel, Basel

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More by Hans Holbein the Younger

Darmstadt Madonna, 1526
The Ambassadors, 1533