Spain / c. 1796–99
Saint Ambrose
The Cleveland Museum of Art catalogs Saint Ambrose as painting (Spain · c. 1796–99).
This work belongs to a series depicting Ambrose, Jerome, Augustine, and Gregory, key figures of early Catholicism. Saint Ambrose (about AD 340–391), the bishop of Milan, resolved important theological conflicts within the church and worked effectively with advocates of Roman paganism.
A CLOSER LOOK
The museum identifies this painting as oil on canvas and credits Francisco de Goya (Spanish, 1746–1828).
The museum's collection notes: This work belongs to a series depicting Ambrose, Jerome, Augustine, and Gregory, key figures of early Catholicism. Saint Ambrose (about AD 340–391), the bishop of Milan, resolved important theological conflicts within the church and worked effectively with advocates of Roman paganism. The low viewpoint and large scale suggest that this painting hung high on the wall of a religious institution, but its original location remains unknown. In the late 1700s, Spain expelled all the Jesuits and sparked a transformation of the church. Many of these reformers turned back to early church history for inspiration, and this painting was probably commissi
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The Cleveland Museum of ArtSaint AmbroseOriginal explanation based on the sources above. Images carry their own reuse terms.