Mattia Preti (c. 1664-65)
St. Nicasius
Oil on stone
St. John's Co-Cathedral, Valletta, Malta
Sources placing his death in 407 credit him with prophesying the
invasion of France by the Vandals. He notified his people of this vision,
telling them to prepare. When asked if the people should fight or not, Nicasius
responded, "Let us abide the mercy of God and pray for our enemies. I am
ready to give myself for my people." Later, when the barbarians were at
the gates of the city, he decided to attempt to slow them down so that more of
his people could escape. He was killed by the Vandals either at the altar of
his church or in its doorway. He was killed with Jucundus, his lector,
Florentius, his deacon, and Eutropia, his virgin sister.
After the killing of Nicasius and his colleagues, the
Vandals are said to have been frightened away from the area, according to some
sources even leaving the treasure they had already gathered. More on Saint
Nicasius
Mattia Preti (24 February 1613 – 3 January 1699) was an Italian Baroque artist who worked in Italy and Malta. He was appointed a Member of the Order of Saint John.
Born in the small town of Taverna in Calabria, Preti was called Il Cavalier Calabrese after appointment as a Knight of the Order of St. John (Knights of Malta) in 1660. His early apprenticeship is said to have been with the "Caravaggist" Giovanni Battista Caracciolo, which may account for his lifelong interest in the style of Caravaggio.
Probably before 1630, Preti joined his brother Gregorio in Rome. In Rome, he painted fresco cycles. Between 1644 and 1646, he may have spent time in Venice, but remained based in Rome until 1653.
During most of 1653–1660, he worked in Naples, where he was influenced by Luca Giordano. One of Preti's masterpieces were a series of large frescoes, ex-votos of the plague depicting the Virgin or saints delivering people from the plague.
Having been made a Knight of Grace in the Order of St John, he visited the order’s headquarters in Malta in 1659 and spent most of the remainder of his life there. Preti transformed the interior of St. John's Co-Cathedral in Valletta with a huge series of paintings on the life and martyrdom of St. John the Baptist (1661–1666).
Preti was fortunate to enjoy a long career and have a considerable artistic output. His paintings, representative of the exuberant late Baroque style, are held by many great museums. More on Mattia Preti
History of Saint Nicaise
Stained glass window of the 13th century
Church of Soissons, (Louvre Museum)
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