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The Martyrdom of Saint Lawrence
Pacino di Bonaguida (Italian (Florentine), active about 1303 - about 1347)
Florence, Italy (Place Created)
Tempera and gold leaf on parchment
Ms. 80b, verso
Leaf: 19 × 20.8 cm (7 1/2 × 8 3/16 in.)
At the center of this miniature, Saint Lawrence, a Roman deacon who lived during the third century A.D., endures torture on a flaming grill during his martyrdom as several Roman soldiers and two judges look on. At the upper right, two angels lift Saint Lawrence's soul up to heaven where God receives him with open arms. This scene was painted by Pacino di Bonaguida, one of the leading Florentine artists of the early 1300s. This miniature demonstrates Pacino's characteristic palette of rich blue, bright orange, and acid yellow, as well as his compositional creativity.
This miniature comes from a laudario, a type of manuscript filled with lauds, or songs of praise, written in Italian and used by pious lay communities. This laudario was commissioned by a group of worshippers called the Compagnia di Sant'Agnese that sang the hymns in this manuscript at the church of Santa Maria del Carmine in Florence.
Music for the Masses: Illuminated Choir Books (August 14 to October 28, 2007)
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Rare Finds: Ten Years of Collecting Manuscripts (February 12 to April 20, 2008)
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Florence at the Dawn of the Renaissance: Painting and Illumination, 1300-1350 (November 13, 2012 to June 16, 2013)
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- Art Gallery of Ontario (Toronto), March 16 to June 16, 2013