Italian school; mid 17th century

Italian school; mid-17th century.
"Sketch of Saint Peter.
Oil on canvas. Re-drawn.
Measurements: 33 x 23 cm.
In this canvas the artist represents St. Peter in act of penitence, half-length and in the foreground, illuminated on a dark background, which enhances his corporeity at the same time that it helps to focus the attention on the figure. The saint is easily identified thanks to his usual iconographic features: he has a prominent bald head, grey hair and a short beard. In addition, in the middle-ground on the right, the keys can be made out, an emblem of his power on earth and in heaven, granted by Christ. The scene is set in the interior of the Mamertine prison, where, according to Christian legend, Saint Peter was imprisoned before being crucified. The composition is dominated by earth tones and a strong chiaroscuro, characteristic of the Spanish school of the 17th and 18th centuries, as well as the use of emphatic and monumental forms. Technically, the use of a long, loose brushstroke stands out, with a completely sketchy, expressive and dynamic finish.
Saint Peter (Bethsaida, c. 1 BC - Rome, 67) was, according to the New Testament, a fisherman, known to be one of Jesus' twelve apostles. The Catholic Church identifies him through the apostolic succession as the first Pope, based among other things on Jesus' words to him: "You are Peter, and on this rock I will build my Church, and the power of Death shall not prevail against it. I will give you the keys of the Kingdom of Heaven. Whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven". St. Peter could be said to have been Jesus' confessor, his closest disciple, the two being united by a very special bond, as narrated in both the canonical and apocryphal Gospels.