Saint John the Baptist
Annually, on the 24th of June, São João is celebrated, a popular feast of the Catholic religion. According to the gospels, St. John the Baptist was a Jewish preacher who was born in Ein Kerem, Judea, in the year 2 BC His birth was announced by the angel Gabriel, his parents, the priest Zechariah and Elizabeth - an elderly couple and supposedly sterile. Due to the spiritual influences of his father, he soon began to preach the word of God and announce the arrival of the Messiah who would free the Jewish people from misery and the domination of other peoples. In the artistic production, Saint John the Baptist is iconographically represented with his right hand raised, a cross, a lamb and purple and red tunics. In addition to these characteristics, there are two famous episodes in his life, which were recurrently represented by artists over the centuries: the baptism of Jesus Christ in the Jordan River and the last moments of his life - when he was arrested and beheaded. This article mentions fifteen artists who contributed to the collection of works of art on the life of St. John the Baptist.
1. Giampietrino (Giovanni Pietro Rizzoli)
The Virgin Nursing the Child and St. John the Baptist Child in Adoration by Giovanni Pietro Rizzoli, 1500-20
2. Josefa de Óbidos
Saint John the Baptist of Josefa de Óbidos, between 1670 and 1675
3. Bartolomé González
Johannes der Täufer by Bartolomé González, circa 1600
4. Leonardo da Vinci
Saint John the Baptist by Leonardo da Vinci, 1508-09
5. Anton Raphael Mengs
St. John the Baptist Preaching in the Wilderness by Anton Raphael Mengs, circa 1760
6. João Cutileiro
Saint John the Baptist of João Cutileiro , 2000
7. Brueghel l'Ancien
La Predication by Saint Jean-Baptiste de Brueghel l'Ancien, 1566
8. Sunday Sequeira
Preaching of St. John the Baptist de Domingos Sequeira, 1793
9. Gregorio Fernández
Baptism of Christ by Gregorio Fernández, 1630
10. Piero della Francesca
Battesimo di Cristo by Piero della Francesca, 1450
11. Mattia Preti
San Giovanni Battista Predicazione by Mattia Preti, 1665
12. Andrea Pisano
South Doors of the Florence Baptistry by Andrea Pisano, between 1330 and 133613. Grão Vasco
João Baptista and Santo António de Grão Vasco, 1515
14. Caravaggio
The Decapitation of John the Baptist or Decapitation of St. John the Baptist by Caravaggio, 160815. Onorio Marinari
Salome with the Head of Saint John the Baptist by Onorio Marinari, 1670