The ''Saint Vincent Ferrer Altarpiece'' is a tempera-on-panel painting by

Giovanni Bellini Giovanni Bellini (; c. 1430 – 29 November 1516) was an Italian Renaissance painter, probably the best known of the Bellini family of Venetian painters. He was raised in the household of Jacopo Bellini, formerly thought to have been his father, ...

(possibly with some collaboration by another artist on the scenes of Ferrer's miracles on the

predella In art a predella (plural predelle) is the lowest part of an altarpiece, sometimes forming a platform or step, and the painting or sculpture along it, at the bottom of an altarpiece, sometimes with a single much larger main scene above, but oft ...

, perhaps Lauro Padovano), dating to 1464–1470 and still in on the altar dedicated to Saint

Vincent Ferrer Vincent Ferrer, Dominican Order, OP ( ; ; ; ; ; ; 23 January 1350 – 5 April 1419) was a Kingdom of Valencia, Valencian Dominican Order, Dominican friar who gained acclaim as a preacher, missionary and logician. After supporting Antipope Benedic ...

Santi Giovanni e Paolo, Venice The Basilica dei Santi Giovanni e Paolo, known in Venetian as San Zanipolo, is a Catholic Church, Catholic minor basilica and Dominican Order, Dominican conventual church in the Castello, Venice, Castello ''sestiere'' of Venice, Italy. It is one ...

, for which it was originally commissioned. Ferrer was a Spanish Dominican who had only been canonised in 1455 and his order was continuing to promote his cult. The altar was finished in 1464 according to a receipt issued by one Olricus de Argentina to the then prior Giovanni da Merano regarding the ''fabrica Sancti Vincentii''.Fogolari, 1932 The altarpiece was mentioned as a work of Bellini in 1581 by Francesco Sansovino and some argue that he may have produced its many canvases in stages, given their stylistic differences. From left to right the central register shows

Saint Christopher Saint Christopher (, , ; ) is venerated by several Christian denominations. According to these traditions, he was a martyr killed in the reign of the 3rd-century Roman Empire, Roman emperor Decius (), or alternatively under the emperor Maximin ...

, Saint Vincent Ferrer and

Saint Sebastian Sebastian (; ) was an early Christianity, Christian saint and martyr. According to traditional belief, he was killed during the Diocletianic Persecution of Christians. He was initially tied to a post or tree and shot with arrows, though this d ...

. The upper register shows a

Pietà The Pietà (; meaning "pity", "compassion") is a subject in Christian art depicting the Mary (mother of Jesus), Blessed Virgin Mary cradling the mortal body of Jesus Christ after his Descent from the Cross. It is most often found in sculpture. ...

flanked by an

Annunciation The Annunciation (; ; also referred to as the Annunciation to the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Annunciation of Our Lady, or the Annunciation of the Lord; ) is, according to the Gospel of Luke, the announcement made by the archangel Gabriel to Ma ...

scene, with the archangel

Gabriel In the Abrahamic religions (Judaism, Christianity, Islam), Gabriel ( ) is an archangel with the power to announce God's will to mankind, as the messenger of God. He is mentioned in the Hebrew Bible, the New Testament and the Quran. Many Chris ...

to the left and the

Virgin Mary Mary was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Saint Joseph, Joseph and the mother of Jesus. She is an important figure of Christianity, venerated under titles of Mary, mother of Jesus, various titles such as Perpetual virginity ...

to the right. Above the Pietà there was originally a

lunette A lunette (French ''lunette'', 'little moon') is a crescent- or half-moon–shaped or semi-circular architectural space or feature, variously filled with sculpture, painted, glazed, filled with recessed masonry, or void. A lunette may also be ...

showing God the Father, to which Mary directed her gaze; this was recorded in 1664 by Boschini but later lost. In 1994, the altarpiece underwent conservation funded by the non-profit organization Save Venice Inc. Polittico di san vincenzo ferrer 08.jpg, ''Saint Christopher and the Christ Child'' Polittico di san vincenzo ferrer 10.jpg, ''Annunciation''

References

Bibliography

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Vincent Ferrer Altarpiece Paintings by Giovanni Bellini 1470 paintings Paintings of Vincent Ferrer Santi Giovanni e Paolo, Venice category:Paintings of Saint Christopher