Saint Peter (polyptych, panel 2 of 5)

This Saint Peter panel, the second of five components of a polyptych by the Master of the Dominican Effigies, was painted around 1345 and is now in the Courtauld Gallery. The anonymous master takes his name from a series of distinctive portraits of Dominican friars, suggesting close ties to the Dominican order in Florence. Polyptych altarpieces with individual saints flanking a central devotional image were the standard format for Italian Gothic church decoration, and Peter's prominence as the first apostle made him a near-universal presence in such ensembles.

Executed in egg tempera on gold-ground panel, the standing saint is rendered within a pointed Gothic arch typical of polyptych framing. The figure displays the master's characteristic style: a softened Giottesque approach with gentle facial modeling, subtle drapery folds, and careful attention to the saint's traditional attributes of keys and book.