St. Demetrius and Zuan Pietro Ghisi

Attributed to Jacopo Tintoretto1
Circa 1544-47
Oil on canvas, 74 x 34.6 in. (188 x 88 cm.)
Church of St. Felix, Venice, Italy

As usual, the saint is pictured as a youthful soldier. The spear in his right hand, the instrument of his martyrdom, is his attribute, as is the red mantle.

The Ghisi family produced many notable Venetians, but Zuan Pietro seems to be known only for commissioning this painting.

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Photographed at the church by Richard Stracke, shared under Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike license.











































NOTE

1 In 1995 one scholar made the controversial suggestion that the painting should be attributed not to Tintoretto but to Giovanni Galizzi, a contemporary who may have done some of his work in Tintoretto's studio. See this page in Cavallini to Veronese.