The Doctors of the Church

Pier Francesco Sacchi's The Doctors of the Church, painted in 1516 and now in the Louvre, depicts the four great Latin Doctors — Ambrose, Augustine, Jerome, and Gregory — the theological authorities whose writings defined orthodox Catholic doctrine and who were represented with their distinctive attributes in countless altarpieces and church decorations. Sacchi, a Genoese painter who worked in a tradition shaped by both Lombard and Ligurian influences, produced this work as an altarpiece or devotional image celebrating the foundations of Catholic theological learning. The Louvre holds this panel as an example of Ligurian High Renaissance painting, a regional tradition less studied than those of Florence, Venice, or Rome but of considerable quality.

The four Doctors are arranged in a balanced composition, each identifiable by their episcopal or cardinal vestments and symbolic attributes. Sacchi's figure style shows Lombard influence in the solid, architectural quality of the figures. The palette is warm and varied, distinguishing the four through costume color.