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Lot Essay
Among the most venerated Christian martyrs and a patron saint of Florence, Saint Lawrence was one of the seven deacons of Rome executed during the 3rd century. Images of Saint Lawrence became increasingly popular in Florence during the reign of the Medici, whose patriarch, Giovanni di Bicci de’ Medici (1360-1429), financed the reconstruction of one of the oldest churches in the city, the Basilica of San Lorenzo. Many of these depictions are explicitly associated with Medici family, such as in the old sacristy of San Lorenzo – the burial place of Giovanni di Bicci – where stucco reliefs on the altar wall depicting Saint Lawrence and Saint Cosma were erected in honor of Giovanni’s sons, Lorenzo and Cosimo. ‘Lorenzo’ would, indeed, become a favored name for generations of Medici to come.
Botticelli, who has long been recognized as one of the most important painters of Renaissance Florence, was one of the many artists in the city who maintained close ties to the Medici. This impressive picture, a fine product of the artist’s thriving workshop, depicts Saint Lawrence with his main attribute, the gridiron on which he was roasted, set against a stone wall and a view out towards a receding landscape. Dressed in a deacon’s vestments with his hair cropped in the style of a cleric’s tonsure, the figure is imbued with a grace and elegance that is typical of the ethereally attractive likenesses Botticelli developed towards the end of his prosperous career.
Although it is possible that this painting may have been a processional banner transported through the streets during religious celebrations, it is more likely to have been painted as a fresco, now transferred to canvas. Although Botticelli is known to have painted decorations for civic celebrations in Florence (including, famously, a banner used by Giuliano de’ Medici in a joust in 1475), it is unlikely that this work was created as a processional standard. The delicate palette, paint texture, and lack of a preparatory ground beneath the surface suggest that the work was originally a fresco. As such, it would have been one of many likenesses of this revered saint that decorated chapel walls throughout Florence and its environs in the 15th century.
Botticelli, who has long been recognized as one of the most important painters of Renaissance Florence, was one of the many artists in the city who maintained close ties to the Medici. This impressive picture, a fine product of the artist’s thriving workshop, depicts Saint Lawrence with his main attribute, the gridiron on which he was roasted, set against a stone wall and a view out towards a receding landscape. Dressed in a deacon’s vestments with his hair cropped in the style of a cleric’s tonsure, the figure is imbued with a grace and elegance that is typical of the ethereally attractive likenesses Botticelli developed towards the end of his prosperous career.
Although it is possible that this painting may have been a processional banner transported through the streets during religious celebrations, it is more likely to have been painted as a fresco, now transferred to canvas. Although Botticelli is known to have painted decorations for civic celebrations in Florence (including, famously, a banner used by Giuliano de’ Medici in a joust in 1475), it is unlikely that this work was created as a processional standard. The delicate palette, paint texture, and lack of a preparatory ground beneath the surface suggest that the work was originally a fresco. As such, it would have been one of many likenesses of this revered saint that decorated chapel walls throughout Florence and its environs in the 15th century.