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Saint Peter Damien Offering the Rule of the Camaldolese Order to the Virgin

Saint Peter Damien Offering the Rule of the Camaldolese Order to the Virgin

Artist: Pietro da Cortona (Italian, 1596-1669)
Date: 1629/1630
Dimensions:
H: 57 5/8 in. (146.4 cm); W: 44 5/8 in. (113.3 cm)
Medium: Oil on canvas
Classification: Paintings
Credit Line: Purchased with funds from the Libbey Endowment, Gift of Edward Drummond Libbey
Object number: 1960.31
Label Text:The Italian saint Peter Damian (1007-1072) became a monk of the white-robed Camaldolese Order—an austere order that fasted frequently and eliminated all luxuries. He became a leader in the Order, even modifying its rules; he later was made a cardinal of the Church, though against his will. In Pietro da Cortona’s painting, Peter Damian is shown offering the rules of the Camaldolese Order to a vision of the Virgin Mary, to whom he was especially devoted. Two cherubs play with his cardinal’s robe and hat. The dramatic presentation, glowing colors, dynamic composition, and promotion of Catholic saints and the Virgin Mary are all hallmarks of the Italian Baroque style, of which Pietro da Cortona was one of the leading practitioners.

Cardinal Francesco Barberini, nephew of Pope Urban VIII, commissioned the painting in 1629 or 1630. Originally intended as a gift to the Camaldolese hermitage at Frascati, the painting remained in the Barberini family until it was acquired by the Museum in 1960.
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