The Fall of Simon Magus
Pompeo Batoni·c. 1745–50
Historical Context
Batoni's Fall of Simon Magus from around 1745-50 depicts the New Testament episode in which the sorcerer Simon, who had offered money to buy the power of the Holy Spirit, is cast out by Peter — an episode whose condemnation of paying for spiritual gifts gave the medieval church the term 'simony' for the sale of ecclesiastical offices. The subject was one of the standard ecclesiastical commission subjects, and Batoni treats it with the large-scale figure composition and dramatic foreshortening that characterized his ambitious history paintings before his career's dominant shift toward portraiture. This early ambition in history painting shows the technical foundations of the figure drawing skill he would later apply to his celebrated Grand Tour portraits.
Technical Analysis
Batoni's oil on canvas shows his early history painting style with dramatic figure composition, rich Baroque color, and the academic drawing skill that would later be refined into his polished neoclassical manner.
Provenance
Earl of Shrewsbury, Alton Towers (1838, sale 1857 as Subleyras), sold, 1983.; Somerville & Simpson (London, England), sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art, 1983.
