Saint Christopher with Saint Roch and Saint Sebastian by Lorenzo Lotto

This painting of Saint Christopher with Saints Roch and Sebastian, dated 1535, combines three of the most popular protective saints in Renaissance devotion. Saint Christopher guarded travelers, Saint Roch protected against plague, and Saint Sebastian was invoked against epidemic disease. Lorenzo Lotto received numerous commissions for such devotional images from churches and confraternities throughout the Veneto and the Marches. The combination of these three saints suggests the painting was commissioned during or after a period of plague threat in its community of origin.

Lotto arranges the three monumental saints in a balanced yet dynamic composition, with Saint Christopher's towering figure providing the central axis. His Venetian colorism is evident in the rich, warm palette and the subtle interplay of light across varied fabric textures.