PROVENANCE: Cook Collection, Richmond, England; Central Picture Galleries, 1970; BJU, 1970.

Andrea del Sarto received his initial training from Piero di Cosimo but later fell under the influence of Leonardo da Vinci, Fra Bartolommeo, and Michelangelo. This St. Sebastian illustrates the sculptural form that del Sarto learned from Michelangelo as well as the gracefulness of pose and vivid color contrasts that later characterized the Florentine mannerists. This painting is considered to be the finest copy of the lost original.

St. Sebastian is the last painting that del Sarto completed before he died of the plague. Because Sebastian was a popular patron of plague victims during del Sarto's life, this image may have been del Sarto's personal meditation on deliverance from the disease.

St. Sebastian holds an arrow, symbolizing his form of martyrdom, and a palm frond, symbolizing victory over death.