Bernardino Luini, a celebrated Milanese painter, followed the pictorial traditions of Leonardo da Vinci. His style is characterized by soft, rounded forms and simplified structures. These panels originally formed part of an altarpiece painted for the Church of Saint Sisinio a Mendrisio near Lake Lugano.
In the" Vow of the Three Friends," Saints Sisinio, Martyrius and Alexander set forth on their journey from Cappodocia. In "The Ordination" the three are invested by the Bishop of Trent and sent out as missionaries. The "Altar of Saturn" shows them refusing to sacrifice to a pagan deity, angering the local priest. This is followed by the "Martyrdom of Martyrius and Alexander", in which the two monks are killed by angry local pagans. The "Martyrdom of Saint Sisinio" shows the bound bodies of the three saints dragged by soldiers. Their church, seen in the background, was later destroyed by the pagans.
Details
- Artist Name: Bernardino Luini (Italian, c.1481/2-1532)
- Title: The Story of the Val di Non: "The Altar of Saturn"
- Date: 1525
- Medium: Oil on panel
- Dimensions: 12-3/4 x 16-1/2 in. (32.4 x 42.0 cm)
- Credit Line: Norton Simon Art Foundation
- Accession Number: M.2004.3.3.P
- Copyright: © Norton Simon Art Foundation
Object Information
Giulio Sacco, Varese, Italy, 1797 to;
Count Giacomo Sannazzaro, by bequest to;
Ospedale Maggiore, Milan, to;
Count Giovanni B. Lucini Passalacqua, Milan, to 1885 04 14, sold through;
[Theatre de la Scala, Milan, April 14, 1885 (lots 2, 3, 4)].
Charles H. Butler, London, by 1891.
Robert H. and Evelyn Benson, London, 1893 to 1927 06 01, to;
[Duveen Brothers, New York (stock #29351), sold 1965 to;
The Norton Simon Foundation;
Norton Simon Art Foundation.
Exhibition of Works by The Old Masters and by Deceased Masters of the British School; including a collection of Water Colour Drawings illustrating the Progress of the Art of Water Colour in England
- London, Royal Academy, 1891-02-05 to 1891-03-24
Catalogue of Pictures by Masters of the Milanese and Allied Schools of Lombardy
- Burlington Fine Arts Club, 1898 to 1898
Leonardo da Vinci 1452-1519: Loan Exhibition
- Los Angeles County Museum of Art, 1949-06-03 to 1949-07-17
Mostra di Bernardino Luini
- Como, Villa Communale dell'Olmo, 1953-06 to 1953-09
Delle opere d'arte antica
- Milan, Palazzo di Brera, 1872-08-26 to 1872-10-07
Exhibition of Works by the Old Masters and Deceased Masters of the British School
- London, Royal Academy, 1910-01-03 to 1910-03-12
Exhibition of Early Italian Art from 1300 to 1550
- London, New Gallery, 1893 to 1894
Lock, Stock and Barrel: Norton Simon's Purchase of Duveen Brothers Gallery
- Norton Simon Museum, 2014-10-24 to 2015-02-16
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- Graves, A., A Century of Loan Exhibitions, 1913, pp. 721-722
- Italian Pictures Collected by Robert and Evelyn Benson, 1914, nos. 63-65 pp. 123-126
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