Lamentation

This preparatory sketch shows two skeletons positioned as if they are carrying a heavy body, a method the artist used to understand the underlying mechanics of a scene of Christ's deposition. Surrounding the central figures are several studies of female faces with varying expressions and headdresses. The drawing reveals the process of building a composition from the internal structure of the human frame outward.

This work documents the Renaissance practice of anatomical investigation as a branch of natural philosophy. It reflects the influence of humanist theorists like Leon Battista Alberti, who argued that an artist must understand the bones and muscles to truthfully depict the soul's movements through the body.