Art Institute of Chicago

Martyrdom of Saint Martina

Antonio Gherardi

Date

c. 1665

Medium

Etching on cream laid paper

Culture

Italy

Department

Prints and Drawings

Institution

Art Institute of Chicago

A talented painter and stucco decorator, Antonio Gherardi made relatively few prints. Among the first works of his career was a six-part etching series narrating the martyrdom of Saint Martina. In this fourth scene, Martina, after her refusal to worship the pagan gods, is tortured with iron rods that eventually will inflict 118 wounds to her flesh. After continued torture, which included a bath in hot oil, she was beheaded. Her wounds were said to have bled milk, leading to her canonization as the patron saint of nursing mothers.

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