AGOSTINO BELTRANO (Naples, 1607 – 1662) - Martyrdom of Saint Sebastian

Descriptio Oil on canvas. Dimensions: 138 x 184 cm. Agostino Beltrano was one of the most prominent representatives of Neapolitan Baroque painting in the first half of the 17th century, developing a style deeply influenced by Caravaggesque naturalism and the Neapolitan pictorial tradition of his time. This work depicts the martyrdom of Saint Sebastian, one of the most venerated saints of the Counter-Reformation, showing the moment of his torment with a composition of great dramatic intensity and a solid anatomical construction of the figures. The attribution to Agostino Beltrano was proposed by Professor Nicola Spinosa and is supported by several stylistic characteristics typical of the Neapolitan master. Particularly significant is the landscape that opens up on the left side of the composition, closely comparable to that which appears in the well-known Lot and His Daughters in the Molinari Pradelli collection, where a similar conception of space and nature is observed. It also shows clear affinities with the canvases depicting the Adoration of the Golden Calf and the Return to the Land of Canaan, held in the Baratta Collection in Naples and exhibited in the exhibition Civiltà del Seicento. These works reveal the same interest in expansive landscape backgrounds constructed with dense and exuberant vegetation, a recurring element in the artist’s oeuvre. The monumentality of the figures, the sculptural modeling of the bodies, the use of contrasting lighting, and the integration of the landscape as an active part of the narrative place this work firmly within the best traditions of the Neapolitan Baroque. The painterly quality of the canvas and the compositional and formal similarities with other recognized works by Beltrano reinforce an attribution fully consistent with his known catalogue raisonné. Provenance: Important Italian private collection. Lot in international warehouse (within the EU). Intra-EU shipping: no import duties apply within the EU. An export permit from the country of origin may be required.

Estimation:€90,000

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