Saint Bartholomew 1475

Carlo Crivelli, an artist of the early Italian Renaissance, painted this panel of Saint Bartholomew, whose date is unknown, using tempera on wood. Crivelli worked primarily in the Veneto region, where this panel reflects the influence of the late Gothic style, marked by its meticulous detail and ornamental qualities. Bartholomew's identity is communicated through symbolic objects, holding both a book, representing knowledge and faith, and the flaying knife, referencing his martyrdom. As the story goes, he was skinned alive for his Christian beliefs. Here, the saint looks away from us, and his serious expression might evoke a sense of the pain and suffering he endured. The symbolic and emotional dimensions of this artwork invite us to consider the relationship between faith, identity, and physical suffering, and how these themes resonate across different historical and cultural contexts.