The early christian martyr st. Agatha was pursued by the consular official of sicily. She refused him, and the tortures to which he submitted her included cutting off her breasts. They were restored though the divine intervention of st. Peter. This devotional image shows the saint contemplating god while tenderly holding the pincers, the instruments of her sufferings through which she achieved her sanctity. The palm branch is the attribute of martyrs. The way in which the saint is modeled with soft sfumato (an almost invisible rendering of the transitions from light to shade) and emerges from a dark background is characteristic of furini's work. Date: between circa 1635 and circa 1645. Place of creation: Florence, Italy. Dimensions: Painted surface height: 64.2 cm (25.2 in); width: 50.3 cm (19.8 in). Medium: oil and tempera on canvas. Collection: Walters Art Museum. Francesco Furini - St Agatha - Walters 371839
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