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Saint Margaret of Cortona

ca. 1758
On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 627
Traversi is known for bawdy scenes of contemporary Italian life; however, here he presents the key elements in the biography of Margaret of Cortona, a thirteenth‑century nun canonized during his childhood. She is known for running away with a lover as a young woman and bearing a child out of wedlock. When her lover’s dog returned home without him, she discovered his brutal murder and adopted a life of charity and penitence. Here, that very child and the dog appear in the foreground while Satan, meant to symbolize her former life that the church deemed sinful, withdraws defeated into hell.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Saint Margaret of Cortona
  • Artist: Gaspare Traversi (Italian, Neapolitan, ca. 1722–1770)
  • Date: ca. 1758
  • Medium: Oil on canvas
  • Dimensions: 67 3/4 x 48 1/4 in. (172.1 x 122.6 cm)
  • Classification: Paintings
  • Credit Line: Gwynne Andrews Fund, 1968
  • Object Number: 68.182
  • Curatorial Department: European Paintings

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Saint Francis, Federico Barocci Italian, Oil on canvas
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Head of an Old Woman, Orazio Borgianni Italian, Oil on canvas
Head of an Old Woman
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after 1610
The Denial of Saint Peter, Caravaggio (Michelangelo Merisi) Italian, Oil on canvas
The Denial of Saint Peter
Caravaggio (Michelangelo Merisi)
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The Capture of Carthage, Giovanni Battista Tiepolo Italian, Oil on canvas
The Capture of Carthage
Giovanni Battista Tiepolo
1725–29

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