Giovanni di Balduccio, The Tomb of St. Peter Martyr (Peter of Verona)
1336-39
Marble
Portinari Chapel
Basilica of Sant'Eustorgio, Milan
The flow of narrative goes from right to left, and then circles down to the praying figure and up to the saint's ascension. On the right the Cathars of Milan hire assassins to kill Peter of Verona. The man on the far right engages the first assassin by raising his right hand as if administering an oath and holding the man's arm with his left. In the Latin accounts, the Cathars were said to have entered into a conjuratio, a word for "conspiracy" that literally means "a swearing together." The assassin's short sword is already out of its sheath and in his hand. At his back is the second assassin, who has his hand on his sword. Both wear sleeved jackets over short tunics or skirts.
On the left is the actual murder. The assassin with the cap cleaves Peter's skull with his sword. In the foreground Peter kneels and prays the Creed and "Into thy hands I commend my spirit" as recounted in the Golden Legend. Finally, at the top center, angels carry his soul to Heaven.
The numerous trees and the rocky ground establish the setting in the countryside between Como and Milan.
The statues at the corners are of two of the Doctors of the Church: St. Augustine on the left and St. Ambrose on the right.
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Photographed at the chapel by Richard Stracke, shared under Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike license.