Attributed to Benedetto Da Rovezzano and Donato Benti, Saint Sebastian, c. 1503-04

1503

Medium

Marble

Dimensions

108 × 34 cm

Status

In Gallery Collection

Collect24 Art ID

C24-149485

The figure of Saint Sebastian , slightly over a metre tall, was originally intended to be housed within a niche. This is indicated by the unfinished back of the sculpture, particularly at the lower part of the tree trunk where the saint is bound. It is plausible that the structure intended to house the statue might have left the top of the stump exposed; it bends above the saint’s head, and is extensively carved, suggesting that it was meant to be somewhat visible from within the basin that likely topped the shrine. Saint Sebastian is depicted in a precarious pose, his wrists tightly bound by intricate knots to the rough bark of the tree. His emaciated body is constrained in a posture that, with the left arm unnaturally twisted above him, bends his other behind his back, forcing his legs to seek unstable support on the uneven base. His face, characterised by an open mouth and wide eyes, tilts backward as if seeking divine comfort from above. The sculpture lacks arrow holes (similarly there is no slot for securing a halo), which implies that it depicts the moment just before Sebastian’s martyrdom, when the young Praetorian awaited his execution on the Palatine Hill, condemned by Diocletian for his undisclosed Christian faith and his support of Christians.