Saint Peter in jail

Saint Peter imprisoned was a subject that allowed Caravaggist painters to explore the paradox of divine light penetrating physical darkness. Stom’s version from around 1628 belongs to his earliest Italian works, painted shortly after his arrival in Rome. The imprisoned apostle, awaiting angelic deliverance, provided an ideal pretext for Stom’s emerging mastery of extreme chiaroscuro. Stom's mastery of candlelight effects was among the most technically accomplished of all Caravaggist painters, surpassing many of his contemporaries in the subtlety of his graduated shadows and the warmth of his artificial illumination.

A supernatural glow illuminates Peter’s face and chains against the cell’s absolute darkness. The paint surface is relatively smooth, characteristic of Stom’s early technique before he adopted looser brushwork.