HIST 214 Lecture Notes - Lecture 1: Josse Lieferinxe, Walters Art Museum, Sebastiano Ricci
3 May 2016
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Document Summary
Saint sebastian interceding for the plague stricken, an oil painting on wood by josse lieferinxe, was painted between 1497- 1499. Its dimensions are 81. 8cm x 55. 4 cm and was purchased by the. Lieferinxe was born in 1493 and died in france. Saint sebastian, a roman military officer under emperor diocletian, was ordered to be shot by arrows and his body was thrown in the sewers. He was nursed by a christian widow and survived. He was then clubbed to death at around ad 300. During the middle ages, his relics were believed to be at the basilica of san sebastiano which pilgrims visited. In art, he is often depicted nude with arrows piercing his body. The arrows symbolize the plague because the wounds resemble buboes (swollen nymph nodes). During the renaissance, christians would pray to him, and he was considered to be the protector against the plague.
