
The Temptations of Saint Anthony Abbot
46.4 x 58.2 cm; oil on wood panel (FC 419)
Along with two others (FC 587 and FC 588), this panel narrates stories of Saint Anthony Abbot, the pioneer of monasticism. In the first scene he gives his worldly goods away to the poor: then, dressed in a monk’s robe and with a tau-shaped staff, he is tempted with money offered by demons. Finally, the demons attack him. The triptych is from the artist’s mature phase, which dates roughly to the 1480s when he was at the court in Mantua. The perfectly preserved panels show strong links to Andrea Mantegna’s work. The extraordinary series was purchased by Prince Camillo, who admired its Gothic-inspired sculptural vigour and minute details, as perfectly executed as those of the Flemish painters.