Portrait of a Woman as Saint Catherinec. 1560 · Study 1916.825

Context from the museum

Saint Catherine of Alexandria, a Christian, was martyred for refusing to make sacrifices to idols as decreed by the pagan Roman emperor Maxentius. While Maxentius first attempted to slay Catherine with spiked wheels, the machine broke when she prayed for salvation, and the emperor subsequently beheaded her. Catherine is identified in portraits through objects related to her martyrdom, such as a broken wheel, or a palm branch symbolizing the victory of the eternal spirit over mortal flesh. In sixteenth-century Florence, patrician women were often portrayed as such exemplary figures, indicating the virtues of the sitter.

Museum description reproduced from its CC0 open-access record. Read the original catalog entry.

A detail to notice

The spiked wheel identifies this woman as the Christian martyr Saint Catherine.

Observation supplied by the Cleveland Museum of Art.

Read the dimensions before the image

The selected unframed measurement for Portrait of a Woman as Saint Catherine is 71.3 cm wide and 95 cm high, equivalent to approximately 28.1 × 37.4 inches. Dividing width by height gives a format ratio of 0.75:1. The rectangular bounding area is 0.68 square meters; it describes the measured footprint, not the amount of paint or the monetary value.

On an illustrative 300 cm wall, the recorded width occupies 23.8% of the span before adding a frame. A centered placement leaves approximately 114.3 cm on each side before adding a frame. These are calculations by Physical Art For Crypto using museum measurements. They are not the museum’s display recommendations.

Questions to bring to your own collection

With Portrait of a Woman as Saint Catherine in view, identify one feature you can point to, then distinguish what the museum records from your personal response. Keep its medium, oil on wood, in your notes when comparing contemporary works.

• Which part of this vertical composition catches your eye first?
• Would a 71.3 cm width still suit the space after allowing for furniture and a frame?
• What surface detail would you need to see in person or in a close photograph?