Portrait of St Sebastian with an Arrow

This 1499 Portrait of Saint Sebastian with an Arrow at the Accademia Carrara, Bergamo, depicts the Roman soldier-martyr who survived his first execution by arrows, traditionally shown holding the arrow as both his attribute and the instrument of his near-martyrdom. Dating to 1499, the work reflects Dürer's early command of the devotional portrait type that combined the conventions of secular portraiture with sacred subject matter. Albrecht Dürer brought Italian Renaissance ideas north, combining German Gothic tradition with classical proportions to become the dominant artist in the German-speaking world. Portraiture flourished during the Renaissance, and this hybrid devotional-portrait format — in which a saint is depicted with the realism of a specific individual rather than the generality of a conventional icon — demonstrates Dürer's early engagement with the possibilities of naturalistic sacred art.

Oil on canvas, the portrait demonstrates Albrecht Dürer's command of scientific observation and meticulous detail. The careful modeling of the face reveals close study of the sitter's physiognomy, while the treatment of costume and setting projects appropriate social standing.