Guercino, 'Saint Gregory the Great with Jesuit Saints', about 1625-6

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Saint Gregory the Great with Jesuit Saints

Guercino

Room 32

About the work

Overview

This altarpiece commemorates one of the most important events of the papacy of Pope Gregory XV (born Alessandro Ludovisi). It shows the Jesuits Ignatius Loyola and Francis Xavier being canonised (officially declared saints in the Roman Catholic Church). This occurred on 12 March 1622, the feast day of Saint Gregory the Great.

Regarded as one of the Doctors, or Fathers, of the Western Church, Gregory the Great was pope from 590 to 604. Here he is seated on an elevated throne between Saint Ignatius Loyola, Spanish founder of the Society of Jesus (or Jesuits), on the left and Saint Francis Xavier, the first great Jesuit missionary, on the right.

The painting was likely commissioned by the Ludovisi family after Gregory XV’s death in 1623 to honour his close connections with the Jesuit order. The Ludovisi were one of Bologna’s most distinguished families and early patrons of Guercino.

In-depth

Regarded as one of the Doctors, or Fathers, of the Western Church, Gregory the Great was pope from 590 to 604. Here he is seated on an elevated throne between the two Jesuit saints, leafing through a large book on his lap, a sign of his wisdom and learning. Gregory has removed his glasses and gazes up at the white dove, suggesting divine inspiration from the Holy Ghost. At the bottom right a chubby putto plays with the papal tiara, or crown, while two putti at the top right mimic the pious poses of the figures below. At left a youthful angel plays the violin, a reference to Gregory’s renowned musical abilities.

Saint Ignatius Loyola (1491–1556), Spanish founder of the Society of Jesus (or Jesuits), kneels to the left of the Pope. He holds a Jesuit Bible, recognisable by the ‘IHS’ symbol embossed on its cover. To the right is Saint Francis Xavier (1506–1552), the first great Jesuit missionary, holding a white lily and looking up at the Pope. Though the figures are densely packed into a shallow space, the artist has achieved a sense of depth by introducing a range of textures. Both Jesuit saints are dressed in the simple black habit of their monastic order, placing them in contrast with the Pope in his brocaded cope. The carved stone plinth on which the Pope is seated is partly in shadow, as is the ornate jewelled tiara near the base of the picture. The seated putto, with a swathe of fabric twisted around him, turns his face away from us. The arrangement of these various elements also contributes to the sense of depth and space.

Gregory the Great was the namesake of Gregory XV, who was pope from 1621 until his death two years later. Although the two Jesuit saints were canonised in 1622, the style of this picture suggests it was made three or four years later. Several characteristics align this painting with the work Guercino produced after his trip to Rome between 1621 and 1623, particularly the intensity of colour and the fine detail. The elaborate rendering of the sumptuous fabric worn by Saint Gregory the Great is typical of Guercino around this time, and is similar to the vestments worn by the high priest Simeon in The Presentation of Jesus in the Temple (1623).

The painting was likely commissioned by the Ludovisi family – possibly by Pope Gregory XV’s nephew, Cardinal Ludovico Ludovisi – in the years following Gregory XV’s death to honour his close connections with the Jesuit order. The Ludovisi were one of Bologna’s most distinguished families and early patrons of Guercino, who had worked for them since 1617. The family also supported the construction of a great church in Rome in honour of Saint Ignatius Loyola. This altarpiece was probably originally destined for that church or for one of the Jesuit buildings adjoining it, but was given away by the family in 1646.

Key facts

Details

Full title: Saint Gregory the Great with Saints Ignatius Loyola and Francis Xavier
Artist: Guercino
Artist dates: 1591 - 1666
Date made: about 1625-6
Medium and support: oil on canvas
Dimensions: 296 × 211 cm
Acquisition credit: Presented by the Trustees of Sir Denis Mahon's Charitable Trust through the Art Fund, 2013
Inventory number: NG6622
Location: Room 32
Collection: Main Collection
Frame: 21st-century Replica Frame

Provenance

Presumably commissioned by the papal Ludovisi family, probably in 1625–6. Given by Prince Niccolò Ludovisi, nephew of Pope Gregory XV, to Don Juan Alfonso Enríquez de Cabrera (1597–1647), 9th Almirante de Castilla and viceroy of Naples, in 1646; donated to the church of San Pascual Bailon, Madrid, by his son, the 10th Almirante, at his death in 1691 and recorded there by Antonio Ponz in 1776. The painting was removed from the church by 1815, probably by Baron Mathieu de Faviers, Intendant-général of Napoleon’s Armée du midi, in whose posthumous sale in Paris it appeared on 11 April 1837, lot 18. Acquired by the 2nd Duke of Sutherland and hung at Stafford (now Lancaster) House, London; sold Christie’s, London, 8 February 1908 (Duke of Sutherland sale), lot 82, bought by Sir George Faudel Phillips, Bt, and placed at Balls Park, Hertford. Seen there by Sir Denis Mahon in the mid-1930s and bought by him in 1941 after the death of Sir Lionel Faudel-Phillips (son of Sir George); lent for the exhibition Guercino in Britain, The National Gallery, London, 1991; presented by the Trustees of Sir Denis Mahon’s Charitable Trust through the Art Fund, 2013.

Additional information

Text extracted from the ‘Provenance’ section of the catalogue entry in Gabriele Finaldi and Michael Kitson, ‘Discovering the Italian Baroque: The Denis Mahon Collection’ (exh. cat. National Gallery, London, 1997), London 1997 and supplemented by the National Gallery’s Annual Report, ‘The National Gallery: Review of the Year, April 2012 – March 2013’; for further information, see the full catalogue entry.

Bibliography

1844

A.M. Jameson, Companion to the Most Celebrated Private Galleries of Art in London: Containing Accurate Catalogues, Arranged Alphabetically, for Immediate Reference, Each Preceded by an Historical & Critical Introduction […], London 1844
1846

Anon., 'Visits to Private Galleries: The Collection of His Grace the Duke of Sutherland K. G', Art Union, VIII, 1846
1854

G.F. Waagen, Treasures of Art in Great Britain: Being and Account of the Chief Collections of Paintings, Drawings, Sculptures, Illuminated Mss. […], vol. 2, trans. E. Eastlake, London 1854
1947

D. Mahon, Studies in Seicento Art and Theory, London 1947
1950

D. Mahon, 'Addenda to Seicento Studies', The Burlington Magazine, XCII, 1950, pp. 80-1
1953

G. Briganti, 'The Mahon Collection of Seicento Paintings', The Connoisseur, CXXXII, 1953, pp. 4-18
1965

A.E. Pérez Sánchez, Pintura italiana del s. XVII en España, Madrid 1965
1968

D. Mahon, Il Guercino: Catalogo critico dei dipinti (exh. cat. Palazzo dell'Archiginnasio, 1 September - 18 November 1968), Bologna 1968
1972

R. Fry, Letters of Roger Fry: 1908, ed. D. Sutton, London 1972
1988

L. Salerno, I dipinti del Guercino, Rome 1988
1991

D.M. Stone, Guercino: Catalogo completo dei dipinti, Florence 1991
1991

S. Ebert-Schifferer (ed.), Il Guercino (exh. cat. Schirn Kunsthalle, 3 December 1991 - 9 February 1992), Frankfurt 1991
1991

M. Helston et al., Guercino in Britain: Paintings from British Collections (exh. cat. The National Gallery, 28 June - 31 July 1991), London 1991
1991

D. Mahon, Giovanni Francesco Barbieri, Il Guercino, 1591-1666 (exh. cat. Museo civico archeologico, 6 July - 10 November 1991; Schirn Kunsthalle, 2 December 1991 - 9 February 1992; National Gallery of Art, Washington, 15 March - 17 May 1992), Bologna 1991
1992

D. Mahon, Guercino: Master Painter of the Baroque (exh. cat. Pinacoteca Nazionale, 6 July - 10 November 1991; Schirn Kunsthalle, 2 December 1991 - 9 February 1992; National Gallery of Art, Washington, 15 March - 17 May 1992), Washington 1992
1995

N. Gotteri, 'Un collectioneur Alsacien: Le Baron Mathieu de Faviers (1761-1833)', Revue d'Alsace, 121, 1995, pp. 111-46
1997

G. Finaldi et al., Discovering the Baroque: The Denis Mahon Collection (exh. cat. The National Gallery, 26 February - 18 May 1997), London 1997
2001

C. Baker and T. Henry, The National Gallery: Complete Illustrated Catalogue, London 2001
2001

B.L. Brown (ed.), The Genius of Rome, London 2001
2005

M. Pulini et al., Nel Segno di Guercino: Guercino as Master Draughtsman: Drawings from the Mahon Collection (exh. cat. Pinacoteca Civica, 28 May - 31 July 2005; Ashmolean Museum, 2 November 2005 - 16 January 2006), London 2005
2006

J. Frings, Barock im Vatikan: Kunst und Kultur im Rom der Päpste II 1572 - 1676 (exh. cat. Kunst und Ausstellungshalle der Bundesrepublik Deutschland, 25 November 2005 - 19 March 2006; Martin-Gropius-Bau und den Berliner Festspielen, 12 April - 10 July 2006), Bonn 2006
2014

National Gallery, The National Gallery: Review of the Year, April 2012 - March 2013, London 2014

About this record

If you know more about this painting or have spotted an error, please contact us. Please note that exhibition histories are listed from 2009 onwards. Bibliographies may not be complete; more comprehensive information is available in the National Gallery Library.

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You've viewed 6 of 8 works

Guercino, 'Saint Gregory the Great with Jesuit Saints', about 1625-6

About the work

Overview

In-depth

Key facts

Details

Provenance

Additional information

Source

Bibliography

About this record

Images

More works by Guercino