Calvary: Saint Sebastian

Joan Mates painted this Calvary with Saint Sebastian around 1417 as part of his activity in the Catalan artistic milieu. Mates was a leading painter in Barcelona during the early fifteenth century, working in the International Gothic style that dominated the Crown of Aragon's artistic production Altarpieces featuring rows of standing saints served both liturgical and devotional functions, identifying the church's patron saints and giving worshippers specific objects for personal prayer.

The panel combines the characteristic Catalan approach to religious imagery with International Gothic elegance, using bold colors and gold ground with firmly drawn figures arranged in a devotional tableau.