The Story
The Basilica of Santa Pudentiana is the eldest Roman Catholic basilica built in the fourth century, Rome, Italy. The original shrine building dates back from the second century and is dedicated to Saint Pudentiana, sister to Praxedes the martyress. Both were daughters of Saint Pudens (whom mentioned by Paul the Apostle in 2 Timothy, 4: 21).
The basilica was the original residence of the Pope during the time of Emperor Marcus Aurelius until 313, when the Emperor Constantine the Great legalized Christianity and offered the Lateran Palace as a church. The historicity of the site is purported to be an adjective used to describe the previous house of the Roman senator, Lord Pudens, the Domus Pudentiana.
Executed in Oil on wood, measuring 12 3/8 × 16 1/8 in. (31.4 × 41 cm), the surface rewards close looking. Girolamo da Carpi builds the composition through layered glazes and a tightly controlled palette, letting cool shadows recede so that the warm, lit passages step forward. The brushwork shifts from the precise to the almost dissolved — a hallmark of mature Baroque practice.
“A silence so complete it becomes its own witness.”
