This altarpiece was painted in Rome in 1527, after the painter's arrival there from Parma (1524). Traditionally entitled ' The Vision of Saint Jerome', that saint is, unusually, depicted asleep, his cardinal's hat balanced on the jaw of a skull. John the Ba ...

This work was painted for the high altar, dedicated to the Magdalen, in the Francesco de Strata chapel in the church of S. Paolo in Vercelli. In the middle distance Christ appears as a gardener to Saint Mary Magdalen on the morning after the Resurrection, ...

Saint Catherine is on the left; the Virgin's cousin Saint Elizabeth on the right holds her son, the infant John the Baptist. This picture was formerly attributed to Palma Vecchio. The costumes accord best with a dating in the early 1530s. ...

While Saint Joseph sleeps in the right background, Saint John the Baptist is shown on the left addressing the Virgin. In an unusual gesture, the Virgin shelters the donor with her right arm. The donor may be Pierfrancesco Borgherini, a wealthy merchant & a friend of both Sebastiano del Piombo & Michelangelo. The painting shows the influence of Michelangelo in its sculptural forms & colouring, & is possibly based on a design by this artist. ...

A private devotional work, probably of the 1540s, but of a pattern conventional in large altarpieces. The kneeling monk wearing the white robes of the severe Carthusian order has two keys hanging from his belt, which echo those held by Saint Peter who, perhaps as his name saint, recommends him to the rapturous infant Christ. ...

It alludes to the martyrdom of the two saints. Catherine was tortured on a wheel, & beheaded. Hippolytus, the gaoler of Saint Lawrence (who converted him), was dragged by wild horses. The work is said to have been commissioned by Canon Conte Tomaso Caprioli, but was probably painted after his death in 1538. ...

The Infant Baptist, wearing a camel skin, appears behind the Virgin Mary & the child Jesus. This is likely to be a work of the second half of the 16th century by a Florentine artist who had revived Pontormo's style. ...

There are several versions of this design which may date from the period when Catena & Giorgione were in partnership around 1506. Although the painting is damaged, some areas are still in relatively good condition, such as the Virgin's blue mantle, paint ...

This painting appears to be a variant of another composition in the Hermitage, St Petersburg, which repeats the group shown here but

Includes:: the figure of Saint Catherine. A copy of the St Petersburg picture is in the Royal Collection, Windsor.

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The Virgin is shown wearing a crown of twelve stars, with the moon at her feet. This image of her recalls the Woman of the Apocalypse, as described in chapter 12 of the Book of Revelation, the last book of the New Testament. The Book of Revelation sets out Saint John's vision of the end of the world & the establishment of Christ's kingdom on earth. John sees the Woman of the Apocalypse, clothed with the sun & wearing a crown of twelve stars, persecuted by a dragon. The Woman gives birth to a male child, who is carried to heaven by angels before the dragon can devour him. The saviour's return to earth results in the defeat of the dragon, giving way to a millennium of peace. The Woman of the Apocalypse & chapter 12 of the Book of Revelation are often associated with the Virgin Mary & the Second Coming of Christ. Here the Virgin is shown before a golden disc representing divine light, recalling the description of the Woman of the Apocalypse as 'clothed with the sun'. This is the earliest painting on canvas in the collection. It has been much damaged & repainted in the past. ...