Saint Stephen
Gherardo Starnina·1410
Historical Context
Gherardo Starnina's Saint Stephen, painted around 1410, depicts the first Christian martyr in his deacon's vestments. This panel likely formed part of a larger altarpiece dismembered over time, with related fragments now dispersed among several museums including the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston 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.
Technical Analysis
The saint is rendered with Starnina's characteristic combination of elegant linearism and volumetric modeling, with the deacon's dalmatic painted in rich colors against a gold ground typical of early Quattrocento panel painting.
