St Roch and the Angel

Fra Bartolomeo painted this Adoration of the Child around 1499, now at the Galleria Borghese, during the period of intense religious crisis following Savonarola's execution. As a devoted Dominican friar and Savonarola's close follower, Fra Bartolomeo was devastated by the reformer's burning, and he abandoned painting almost entirely for several years. This Adoration, depicting the Virgin kneeling before the infant Christ in a posture of humble worship, was an appropriate devotional subject for a deeply religious painter in spiritual turmoil. The Borghese provenance reflects Cardinal Scipione Borghese's early 17th-century acquisitions that created one of Rome's great private collections, systematically assembling major Italian works from institutions and private holders across Italy.

Tempera on panel with Vivarini's characteristic crisp figure drawing and bright coloring. The work demonstrates the artistic qualities characteristic of Bartolomeo Vivarini's period.