Saint Nicholas and the storm

Agnolo Gaddi's Saint Nicholas and the Storm depicts a famous episode from the life of Nicholas of Myra, in which the saint miraculously calmed a tempest threatening sailors at sea. Painted around 1394, near the end of Agnolo's life, this panel likely formed part of a narrative cycle dedicated to Saint Nicholas, one of the most universally popular saints in Gothic Christendom. The Bavarian State Painting Collections acquired this and other Italian Gothic panels during the nineteenth-century enthusiasm for early Italian art.

Tempera on panel with gold ground, featuring Agnolo's lively narrative manner with its animated figures and expressive gestures. The storm scene allows for unusual compositional dynamism, with the tilting ship and agitated waves contrasting with the saint's calm, commanding presence.