After Francesco Vanni, 
Italian 1563-1610- 
The Flagellation of Christ; 
oil on canvas, 103.2 x...

After Francesco Vanni, 
Italian 1563-1610- 

The Flagellation of Christ; 

oil on canvas, 103.2 x 127.4 cm. 

Note: 
A 17th-century copy after a lost painting by Francesco Vanni that was once in the Church of Santa Cecilia in Trastevere in Rome, of which preparatory drawings and various other copies remain. Susan Wegner writes of the original: ‘The Flagellation was placed on an altar to the right of the main altar, near a doorway leading down to the crypt. The painting was in bad condition in the early 19th century, according to Romagnoli, and it was probably removed when the entire altar was replaced by a modern altar during the renovations of the late 19th century. Baglione reported that Vanni’s painting was sent to Rome from Siena, and Nava Cellini noted that Vanni had been paid through intermediaries in Siena.' (Susan Wegner, ‘Further Notes on Francesco Vanni's Works for Roman Patrons’ in Mitteilungen des Kunsthistorischen Institutes in Florenz, 23. Bd., H. 3 (1979), p.316). 

The present work appears to closely follow an early 17th-century copy which today hangs in the corridor between the Chiesa Nuova and the Oratorio dei Filippini in Rome. Three further copies exist in Siena (see Wegman 1979) and there is a French version by Jérémie le Pileur (fl.1619-1638), housed in the Musée des Beaux-Arts de Tours [no.1825-1-51], which changes the central half-column to a full column. 

The version here is exceptional for the good view of the half-column, the relic of which was supposedly housed in Santa Prassede in Rome. Furthermore, it includes the principal tormentor's toes sticking out of his boot, just as in Vanni's drawing in the Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge [PD.37-1980]. The left background shows the penitence of St Peter, who wrings his hands in regret.