Spanish school of the XVII century

Spanish school of the XVII century.
"Saint John the Baptist".
Oil on canvas. Relined.
Presents restoration, Repainting and patch on the back.
Measurements: 100 x 83 cm; 118 x 102 cm (frame).

John the Baptist appears in this Baroque painting represented in half body and, although he does not appear in the composition, he would point with his right hand to the Agnus Dei, zoomorphic incarnation of Christ sacrificed by the humanity as lamb of God. The inscription engraved on the phylactery is a reference to the same message, in reference to the biblical phrase: "this is the lamb of God who cleanses the sin of the world". The figure is placed in front of a background enclosed by some bushes, looking at the viewer with a serene and paused countenance, although with an intense gaze. As is usual in the iconography of the saint, the Baptist has a bushy beard and is dressed in humble rags, which do not cover much of his muscular body. This iconographic model derives from classical bucolic images showing young shepherds tending their livestock, which were adopted in early Christianity as symbolic figures of Jesus caring for his faithful.
John the Baptist was the son of the priest Zechariah and Elizabeth, cousin of the Virgin Mary. He retired at a very young age to the Judean desert to lead an ascetic life and preach penance, and recognized in Jesus, who was baptized by him, the Messiah announced by the prophets. A year after the baptism of Christ, in the year 29, John was arrested and imprisoned by the tetrarch of Galilee Herod Antipas, whose marriage with Herodias, his niece and sister-in-law, he had dared to censure. Finally St. John was beheaded, and his head given to Salome as a reward for his beautiful dances, after a stratagem operated by Herodias.