Pentecost

Barnaba da Modena's Pentecost, dating to around 1371, depicts the descent of the Holy Spirit upon the apostles — a subject of particular importance in the liturgical calendar and frequently represented in Gothic altarpiece cycles. Barnaba was an itinerant painter from Emilia who worked extensively in Genoa and Piedmont, bringing a distinctive blend of Byzantine-influenced figural types and Tuscan compositional ideas to northwestern Italy. His work helped establish a local Gothic painting tradition in Liguria during the second half of the fourteenth century.

Egg tempera and gold on panel, combining Byzantine-derived figural conventions with Western Gothic spatial arrangement. Barnaba's characteristic style features strongly outlined forms, rich gold backgrounds, and expressive gestures that animate the narrative scene.