PALMA VECCHIO
(b. 1480, Serina, d. 1528, Venezia)

Polyptych of St Barbara

1524-25
Oil on panel
Santa Maria Formosa, Venice

Commissioned by the confraternity of the Bombardieri (artillerymen), as evidenced by the crossed canon at the top of the frame, this polyptych is a gently harmonious masterpiece, dominated by the charmingly buxom figure of their patron saint. Given the lack of any marked stylistic development in the painter's work, the dating of the painting is disputed: some scholar see it as an early work (c. 1510), while others place it at the end of his life.




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