Sprawled on the steps, arms raised; a round gold shield lies by him.
Bible in art · Acts
The Conversion of Saint Paul
Tintoretto · c. 1544
National Gallery of Art, Washington
Jacopo Tintoretto painted this large canvas around 1544, when he was about twenty-five and just beginning his career in Venice. An inventory of 1809 probably lists it under the name of another Venetian, Andrea Schiavone; it came to Washington with the Kress Collection in 1961.
Tintoretto turns the road to Damascus into a battle scene. Saul has fallen from his horse onto a few stone steps, and all around him riders, horses and soldiers scatter in panic, some tumbling into a river, under a sky full of cloud.
From the text
- “Suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him” (Acts 9:3)
- “He fell to the ground and heard a voice” (Acts 9:4)
- The men travelling with Saul (Acts 9:7)
The artist’s own
- Horses and a fall from the saddle — the text says only that he fell to the ground
- A heavenly figure in the clouds, though the men “did not see anyone” (Acts 9:7)
- Saul as a Venetian commander with a gold chain, sword and shield
- A river, a bridge and banners
Details
Saul
In the clouds
A figure in pink and blue stretches out a hand towards the scene.
A rearing horse
Its rider in yellow clutches his head with both hands.
Into the river
Men and horses tumble into the water by the bridge.
Banners
Riders on the bridge with billowing pale flags.
Jacopo Tintoretto, Venetian, 1518/1519–1594. National Gallery of Art, Washington (Samuel H. Kress Collection, 1961.9.43) · Oil on canvas · NGA Open Access: "Images of these works are available free of charge for any use, commercial or non-commercial, under Creative Commons Zero (CC0)." (NGA open data: published_images.csv openaccess = 1)