Focus on Pietà (Titian) and discuss the Description.
An original, much smaller, composition just showing the basic two figures of the standard Pietà subject in Christian art, which consists of Virgin Mary cradling the dead body of Christ, was expanded after being completed and delivered (see below).Behind the central figures there is now a large rusticated Mannerist aedicule or niche, flanked by statues standing on plinths carved with giant lion heads.  Along the top of the broken pediment six flaming lamps give a dull light, with another half-hidden in the centre, with vegetation around them, perhaps "the fig leaves of the Fall of Man".  A patch of dark sky can be seen at top left.  Three massive keystone-like blocks in the centre drop below even the bottom of the pediment, a feature typical of the Mannerist architecture of Giulio Romano and his followers.  These three blocks have been said to represent the Holy Trinity, or "Christ as foundation of the faith".A figure who is either the Nicodemus of the gospels or, as usually thought today, Saint Jerome, approaches Christ on his knees, and reaches out to touch his hand. This is generally agreed to be a self-portrait of Titian. On the left, standing and completing a right-angled triangle of the human figures, is Mary Magdalene, who unlike the other figures seems to be in motion. Whether she has just arrived on the scene, or is rushing away in horror is unclear.The two statues at the sides of the grand niche in the background are Moses on the left and the Hellespontine Sibyl on the right, both identified by inscriptions on their pedestals.  The Sibyl was thought to have prophesied the coming of Christ and his crucifixion and she usually is represented holding a book. Some references will identify the figure of the woman as Saint Helena who is associated with finding the true cross, but they are not the same woman. Differences between the imagery and the inscription have led to different identifications.  
A putto-angel with a flaming torch illuminates the scene, which is dark and evidently set at night. In particular his torch reveals the gold mosaic in the semi-dome of the niche, where in the centre a pelican feeds its young by pecking its own breast to draw blood, a phenomenon believed since classical times in traditional zoology, which had become a common visual symbol of the Passion of Christ and its redemptive effects for man.In the bottom right corner a small ex voto picture is propped up against the base of the right-hand statue.  It shows two men kneeling in prayer to a Pietà in the air.  These are agreed to represent Titian and his son Orazio, probably praying to be spared from the plague that in fact killed them both, a full year after it arrived in Venice. Behind the picture, and partly concealed by it, is a small shield with Titian's coat of arms.  In the bottom left corner another young angel is picking up an urn, perhaps the Magdalene's attribute of a jar of ointment.
Mary Magdalene aedicule mosaic Titian Jerome Pietà Venice Giulio Romano Virgin Mary crucifix putto rusticated Hellespontine Sibyl right-angled triangle Saint Helena ex voto pelican broken pediment Passion of Christ redemptive Moses Mannerist Holy Trinity keystone Nicodemus plague semi-dome Trinity Saint Jerome