Josse Lieferinxe
The Martyrdom of Saint Sebastian

Marseille, France, Circa 1497
Oil on panel, 32½ x 21¾ in. (82.5 x 55.2 cm.)
Philadelphia Museum of Art, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

As told in the Golden Legend, after the saint had healed from the arrows the emperors had him beaten to death with cudgels and dumped in the sewer. The beating is shown here in the foreground; his arrow wounds are still visible. Behind, servants are dumping his body into a sewer opening. In the background we see a Roman cityscape with the Colosseum, the Arch of Constantine, and what could be the tower of Santa Maria Maggiore.

Read more about St. Sebastian.

Source: Philadelphia Museum of Art