Luca Signorelli, 'The Virgin and Child with Saints', 1515

This large painting of the Virgin Mary with the infant Christ surrounded by saints was once the main panel of an altarpiece. It was made for a chapel dedicated to Saint Christina of Bolsena in the church of San Francesco in Montone in the Italian region of Umbria.

A large stone hangs from a rope looped round Christina’s neck, as she was weighted down and thrown into a river in punishment for her Christian faith. She survived this, but was eventually killed. To the left of the Virgin is Saint Sebastian, his naked torso shot through with arrows – a reminder of his failed execution, which was ordered by the Roman emperor. The saints standing on the ground are Saint Jerome, his cardinal’s hat by his feet, and Saint Nicholas of Bari, shown wearing his bishop’s robes and hat, called a mitre. Three golden spheres rest on the floor next to him, which represent the sacks of money that he anonymously donated to three destitute young noblewomen, providing them with the means to get married.

This kind of altarpiece, where the saints and the Virgin and Child occupy one panel and are located in a unified imaginary setting, is called a sacra conversazione (‘holy conversation’). This one is set in a broad Italian landscape leading to a fortified town, the sea and mountains beyond. It is populated with goatherds, travelling friars and people transporting goods on horseback.

The Latin inscription on the fictive sheet of paper at the bottom of the picture gives Signorelli’s name, the date he made the picture – 1515 – and the names of the patrons. They were a French doctor called Aloysius (Louis) of Rodez and his wife Tommasina The contract for the commission stipulates that the painting should be the work of Signorelli’s own hand, and that as payment he and his family would receive free medical services from the doctor whenever required. But it seems that Signorelli did have some assistance: his nephew, Francesco, painted the predella which ran along the bottom of our panel (now in the Museo del Brera, Milan) and featured scenes from the life of Saint Christina. Certain areas of our panel have also been identified as the work of assistants.

Surviving records reveal that Signorelli took only two months – July and August of 1515 – to make this picture. There is certainly evidence in the painting that he was working very quickly. The pattern of Saint Nicholas’s golden damask robes, for example, seems to continue over the fabric folds, rather than following their contours, as for example in the area around the uppermost deep fold beneath the rich green lining. Other parts of his robes were painted with great care: the stole showing saints in niches mimics embroidery, while the grey mantle – a strip of it is apparent just above his feet – has an irregular pattern which imitates the subtle effect of watered silk.