On view
Duane Wilder Gallery
Saint Sebastian,
ca. 1500–1510
formerly attributed to Perugino (Pietro di Cristoforo Vannucci), 1450–1523; born Città della Pieve, Italy; died Fontignano, Italy
The subject of Saint Sebastian—who, according to legend, was shot with arrows but miraculously survived, only to be beaten to death—gave artists an opportunity to render the nude male form. To model Sebastian’s body, they often looked to ancient sculptures such as the nearby Roman torso.
Sebastian was embraced as a protector against the bubonic plague because contracting the disease was compared to being shot with an arrow. This painting represents the saint both as a divine being in an abstract setting and as a victim with an arrow piercing his body where the plague’s pustules often appeared.
More Context
According to legend, Saint Sebastian was martyred by the Romans for his Christian faith. He was first shot with arrows but miraculously survived; after he was healed, he was beaten to death. Arrows were traditionally associated with the bubonic plague, as contracting the disease was compared to being shot with an arrow. Thus, Sebastian was embraced as a protector against the plague and was frequently featured in sixteenth- and seventeenth-century European art as a figure of hope. This painting represents the saint both as a divine being in an abstract setting and as a victim with an arrow piercing his body where the plague’s pustules were known to appear. The suffering figure of Sebastian was later incorporated into twentieth-century works responding to the AIDS crisis, including one of David Wojnarowicz’s photomontages from his <em>Sex Series</em>, on view in this gallery.
More About This Object
Information
ca. 1500–1510
Europe, Umbria
Conti degli Oddi, Perugia; Edward Solly, London (until 1847; sale, Christie's, London, May 8, 1847, lot 38, to Lord Northwick); Lord Northwick, Thirlestane House, Cheltenham, Gloucestershire (1847-1873; sale, 1873, through Sir J. Charles Robinson, to Cook); Sir Frederick Lucas Cook, 2d Bt. [1844-1920], Richmond, Surrey (1873- still in 1913); ?by descent to Sir Herbert Frederick Cook, 3d Bt. [1868-1939]; Count Alessandro Contini Bonacossi [1878-1955], Florence (until 1948; probably to Kress) [1]; Samuel H. Kress, 1948-1963 (K1557); given to New Jersey State Museum, Trenton ([FA1963.320] 1963-1994); deaccessioned by New Jersey State Museum, Trenton, 1995; transferred to the Princeton University Art Museum, 1995.
Notes:
[1] Contini-Bonacossi acted as a dealer for Kress and was the source of most Italian paintings in the Kress collection. He bought several paintings from Cook, which then passed into the Kress collection, so while it can't be determined exactly when he obtained the painting, it was most probably directly from the Cook family.
formerly attributed to Perugino (Pietro di Cristoforo Vannucci), 1450–1523; born Città della Pieve, Italy; died Fontignano, Italy
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- Annette Rupprecht and Sheri Francis Shaneyfelt, "School of Pietro Perugino, Saint Sebastian", in Studying and conserving paintings : occasional papers on the Samuel H. Kress Collection, (London: Archetype Publications: in association with the Conservation Center of the Institute of Fine Arts, New York University, 2006)., p. 133-41
- Raffaella Zama, Girolamo Marchesi da Cotignola: pittore: catalogo generale, (Rimini: Luisè, 2007).
- Sarah Arvio, "Master and torso", Society of Fellows of the American Academy in Rome news (Fall, 2009)., p. 12 (illus.)
