The Crucifixion of St Peter
The original, as its museum records it
Every line above is reproduced from the holding institution’s own catalogue entry, which is linked. Where their title, date or attribution differs from ours, theirs is the one printed here.
The file this print is made from
Sizes
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View in the galleryAbout this painting
There is no villain in this martyrdom. The basilica reads the inverted cross as Peter's own choice, humility refusing Christ's death, and the three men hoisting it as labourers rather than tormentors; Heather Nolin finds physical action, strain and groaning.
The basilica reads the dirty foreground feet as the saint's poverty; Nolin finds dirt ground into a labourer's soles, and Peter's feet above pristine but for a line of blood. His face is directed toward the altar.
Nolin, following Steinberg, says the space resolves only from halfway into the chapel, where, Smarthistory says, the cross moves out into the room.
Sources: Basilica di Santa Maria del Popolo, Roma — attraction page, 'Crocifissione di San Pietro' · Beth Harris and Steven Zucker, Smarthistory, 23 Nov 2015 · Giovanni Baglione, Le vite de' pittori, scultori et architetti (Rome, 1642), Life of Caravaggio · Heather Nolin, "'Non piacquero al Padrone': A Reexamination of Caravaggio's Cerasi Crucifixion of St. Peter," Rutgers Art Review 24 (2008)
Amen, amen, I say to thee, When thou wast younger, thou didst gird thyself and didst walk where thou wouldst. But when thou shalt be old, thou shalt stretch forth thy hands, and another shall gird thee and lead thee whither thou wouldst not.
John 21:18 · Douay-Rheims (Challoner)
Printed on demand. Public-domain masterwork, reproduced from a 10,537 px master of the original. The whole image is printed — never cropped to fit the sheet — so every sheet carries an archival margin, and the dimensions and resolution listed above are the ones you receive.