The Stoning of Saint Stephen
Medium
Engraving; second state of two (Bartsch)
Dimensions
Sheet: 16 5/16 × 11 1/4 in. (41.4 × 28.5 cm)
Classification
Prints
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
The Elisha Whittelsey Collection, The Elisha Whittelsey Fund, 1949
Accession Number
49.95.307
Tags
Art Historical Context
Behold *The Stoning of Saint*, a dramatic 1575 engraving by Cherub Alberti, with possible contributions from Carlo Losi and after a design by the Mannerist painter Rosso Fiorentino. This state of two, as cataloged by Adam Bch, measures 16 5/16 × 11 1/4 inches and captures the martyrdom of Stephen, the first Christian martyr, from the Acts of the Apostles. Surrounded by tormentors hurling stones, the saint gazes heavenward in a moment of transcendent faith, embodying themes of punishment and piety central to Counter-Reformation art. Alberti, a skilled Roman engraver trained in the Mannerist st...
About the Artist
Cherubino Alberti (Zaccaria Mattia)|Carlo Losi|Rosso Fiorentino · 1553–1615
Cherubino Alberti (1553–1615), also known by his birth name Zaccaria Mattia, was an Italian engraver and painter active in Rome during the late Renaissance and early Baroque periods. Born in Borgo San Sepolcro in Tuscany, he came from an artistically inclined family and received training that equipped him for work in both painting and the reproductive graphic arts. It was as a printmaker, however,...