Italian School, 18th century.
"Pentecost".
Oil on canvas glued to tablex.
It presents important faults and repainting on the pictorial surface.
Measurements: 154 x 184 cm.
Arranged around the Virgin Mary enthroned, the apostles overlap while they direct their look towards the sky from. This powerful image takes us to the passage related in the book of the Acts of the Apostles in which it is described as they were gathered around the Virgin Mary on the day of Pentecost, seven weeks after the Jewish Passover and ready for one of the main Jewish feasts. Gathered there they were enlightened by God who manifested himself in them with tongues of fire above their heads. Once out of the door they were enlivened with the ability to speak in all languages and to spread the message of the New Covenant.
This scene is presented in a theatrical manner in which each of the characters seems to be arranged in order of importance, with St. Peter kneeling and the evangelists in the foreground, and behind them the rest, including the beloved, St. John.