The Vision of Saint Eustace

Federico Zuccaro (Zuccari)

1542–1609 · Point of brush with brown, gray, green, yellow, and red wash, highlighted with white, over traces of red and black chalk; lightly squared in black chalk · Drawings and Prints

Created while Federico was still under the tutelage of his elder brother Taddeo (1529-1566), this drawing was the model for one of the frescoes that decorated the façade of a house in the Piazza San Eustachio in Rome. Federico's draftsmanship, while less spirited than that of his brother, is admirable for a firmness, clarity, and refined naturalism that were well suited to the Counter-Reformation goal of presenting religious subjects in a direct and accessible manner. The Roman general is depicted at the moment when, during a hunting expedition, he sees the crucified Christ between the horns of a stag and is converted.

Artist

Federico Zuccaro (Zuccari)

Date

1542–1609

Medium

Point of brush with brown, gray, green, yellow, and red wash, highlighted with white, over traces of red and black chalk; lightly squared in black chalk

Department

Drawings and Prints

Credit line

Rogers Fund, 1962