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Garofalo, 'Vision of Saint Augustine', about 1520-35

About the work

Overview

Saint Augustine (about 354–430) was an early Christian theologian whose writings, which included De Trinitate (About the Trinity), profoundly influenced Western Christianity and philosophy. This painting represents his vision in which he saw a child trying to empty the sea into a hole dug in the sand. When Augustine told him that this was impossible, the child, a messenger from God, replied that Augustine’s attempt to explain the Trinity was an equally impossible task. Garofalo has made the child perched on a mound of sand Christ himself, his head crowned with a halo of rays of light.

Garofalo’s depiction of this episode is unusual in that it also includes the holy family, Saint Catherine and Saint Stephen (on the shore in the middle distance). Saints Catherine and Stephen were probably saints to whom the person who commissioned the painting was especially devoted.

Key facts

Details

Full title
Vision of Saint Augustine
Artist
Garofalo
Artist dates
about 1481 - 1559
Date made
about 1520-35
Medium and support
oil on wood
Dimensions
64.5 × 81.9 cm
Acquisition credit
Holwell Carr Bequest, 1831
Inventory number
NG81
Location
Not on display
Collection
Main Collection
Frame
16th-century Italian Frame

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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