Botticelli, Sandro (c.1445-1510)
Tre miracoli di San Zanobi (Three Miracles of Saint Zenobius)
c.1500
Tempera on wood, 64.8 x 139.7 cm
National Gallery, London
This is the second panel in a series of four paintings that tell the story of Florence’s patron saint, Zenobius. Botticelli shows three of the saint’s miracles set in the streets of Florence. In the first scene, on the far left, he shows the saint – who was the bishop of Florence – dressed in a bishop’s mitre and white gloves, exorcising two boys of demons. In the central scene Zenobius restores a child to life as he lies on the lap of his wailing mother. The final episode shows Zenobius curing a blind beggar, placing his fingers over his eyelids. The architectural backdrop would have been familiar to Florentine locals: the large archway is probably the Volta di San Pietro, which still exists. It is in the square of the church of San Pier Maggiore, which Zenobius founded and which is shown here as the backdrop to the scene of the healing of the blind man. (NG)
Compare:
Botticelli, Sandro (c.1445-1510)
Battesimo ed elezione di San Zanobi
c.1500
National Gallery, London
Botticelli, Sandro (c.1445-1510)
Tre miracoli di San Zanobi
c.1500
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York
Botticelli, Sandro (c.1445-1510)
Ultimo miracolo e morte di san Zanobi
c.1500
Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister, Dresden
See also:
• Zenobius of Florence, St. (337-417)