Spanish School, C. 1580 – Saint John The Evangelist – Oil On Panel – 16th Century

Spanish School, last third of the 16th century, circa 1575–1585
Saint John the Evangelist Blessing the Poisoned Cup

Oil on panel.
53 × 38.5 cm

This Spanish Renaissance painting depicts Saint John the Evangelist, shown as a youthful, beardless figure in accordance with Western iconographic tradition.

The saint holds in his left hand a chalice from which a small dragon emerges, while raising his right hand in a gesture of blessing.

This iconography refers to an episode from the apocryphal tradition surrounding Saint John, later popularised throughout the Middle Ages by Jacobus de Voragine’s Golden Legend. According to the account, while John was preaching in Ephesus, the pagan priest Aristodemus presented him with a cup containing deadly poison in order to test his faith. John blessed the cup and drank its contents without suffering any harm. In Western art, the poison came to be represented by a serpent or small dragon emerging from the chalice, which thus became one of the Evangelist’s characteristic attributes.

The deliberately restrained composition focuses all attention on the figure of the saint. His youthful features and pale complexion, the carefully rendered curls, the linear treatment of the drapery and the figure set against a plain dark background are characteristic of the artistic language of the late Renaissance. The work was most likely produced in a Spanish workshop during the last third of the 16th century, drawing upon Italian models then widely circulating throughout the Iberian Peninsula.

The painting has recently undergone conservation cleaning, revealing the luminosity of the flesh tones and the depth of the colours.

Presented in an antique moulded and gilded wooden frame, with minor areas of gilding recently retouched.

Condition: Good overall condition considering its age. Wear, old restorations and surface irregularities consistent with a work of this period. The reverse of the panel bears old reinforcing battens.

Dimensions: panel without frame: 53 × 38.5 cm.

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