Trajan trying to compel Saint Eustace to worship the statue of Jupiter

Pittoni's painting of Trajan attempting to compel Saint Eustace to worship Jupiter, painted in 1722, depicts a scene from the martyrdom legend of the Roman soldier Placidus, who converted to Christianity and took the name Eustace. The subject combines imperial confrontation, pagan idolatry, and Christian resistance in a dramatic narrative that gave Pittoni scope for a multi-figure historical composition. The early date places the work at the beginning of his mature career.

The emperor Trajan and his court are arranged around the idol of Jupiter, while the standing saint refuses to sacrifice. Pittoni's early palette is somewhat richer and more Baroque than his later Rococo manner. The architectural setting of the imperial court provides a formal framework for the confrontation between secular power and religious conviction.