Your Art Gallery: Saints Trivia Quiz

Answer: Bartolome Murillo

Born in 1617 in Seville, the capital of the Andalusia region in southern Spain, Bartolomé Esteban Murillo has a whole room dedicated to his works at the Museum of Cádiz, not far from his birthplace.

Murillo's works could have appeared numerous times in this room: he painted Saint Jerome, Saint Justa, Saint Isidore of Sevilla and Saint Rose of Lima in addition to Saint Peter. In addition to his many religious works, Murillo also painted numerous scenes of everyday life. The best-known include "Two Women at a Window", "Boys Eating Grapes and Melon" and "Three Boys".

The featured painting is part of the collection at the 'Museo de Bellas Artes de Bilbao'. Opened in 1914, this and the Guggenheim Museum, also in the north coast city of Bilbao, are the two largest and most visited museums in Basque country.

One of the twelve apostles and considered by the Catholic church as the first Pope, Peter is the patron saint of numerous causes including bakers, butchers, locksmiths, cobblers, bridge builders and horologists. He is also the patron saint of many places including Rome Italy, Cologne Germany and both Philadelphia and Las Vegas in the USA. Other famous artistic depictions of him include "Saint Peter as Pope" by Peter Paul Rubens (which hangs at the Prado), "The Calling of Peter and Andrew" and "The Denial of Saint Peter", both by Caravaggio, "The Tears of Saint Peter" by El Greco and "The Liberation of St. Peter" by Giovanni Lanfranco.

Answer: Paolo Uccello

Born Paolo di Dono in 1397 in the town of Pratovecchio in Tuscany, central Italy, Paolo Uccello was a mathematician and a painter in the Late Gothic tradition. While his contemporaries were pioneering Classic Realism, Uccello had a unique style with an emphasis on perspective.

Uccello's most famous work is a trio of paintings from 1450-56 depicting the 1432 battle of San Romano (near Florence). Although intended to be viewed together, the three painting are now distributed between three of Europe's most important galleries, the Louvre in Paris, the National Gallery in London and the Uffizi in Florence. Amongst his best-known biblical works is a painting of another saint, "The Stoning of Saint Stephen".

Our featured work is one of Uccello's last. He declared on his 1469 tax return that he was old and unable to work. It is one of two works he completed in 1470, the other being "The Hunt in the Forest", perhaps the best-known work in the collection at the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford. "Saint George and the Dragon" can be seen at the National Gallery in London.

Saint George is the patron saint of scouting and of people with skin diseases. He is also patron saint of many places including England, Georgia, Portugal and the Russian capital, Moscow. Other artistic depictions of him doing battle with the dragon include another 15th-century work, this one by Catalan Gothic artist Bernat Martorell, and a Raphael painting from 1505-06. On a slightly different subject, Italian Renaissance artist Paolo Veronese painted "The Martyrdom of Saint George" in 1564.

Answer: Raphael

Born Raffaello Sanzio da Urbino in 1483 in the walled city of Urbino, today a UNESCO World Heritage Site in recognition of its legacy of Renaissance culture. A notable architect as well as one of the greatest painters of all time, he is known today by the single name, Raphael.

Although he died at the age of just 37, Raphael left behind an enormous body of work, notably the frescoes at the Raphael Rooms in Vatican City. His most famous work is "The School of Athens", which is also housed at the Vatican. He painted many biblical works (notably numerous Madonnas) as well as many portraits of leading figures of his era.

"St Paul Preaching in Athens" is part of the Royal Collection housed at Buckingham Palace.

Saint Paul, also known as Saul of Tarsus, is the patron saint of missions, theologians, Gentile Christians and the city of London. Other notable artistic depictions of him include "Saint Paul the Apostle" by Dutch master Rembrandt (which can be seen at the National Gallery of Artin Washington DC), by El Greco (which hangs at the Saint Louis Art Museum) and by Italian artist Bartolomeo Montagna (on display at the Museo Poldi Pezzoli in Milan). Caravaggio painted Saint Paul numerous times: "Conversion on the Way to Damascus" (which can be seen at the church of Santa Maria del Popolo in Rome) and "The Conversion of Saint Paul" (which is part of the Odescalchi Balbi Collection in Rome).

Answer: El Greco

Born Domenikos Theotokopoulos in 1541 in the city of Heraklion on the island of Crete, which was then part of the Republic of Venice, he was/is widely known as El Greco. He went to Venice in 1567 and then on to Rome before moving to Spain, first Madrid and then Toledo, in 1577. He established his reputation in Spain with a series of nine paintings for the church of Santo Domingo el Antiguo in Toledo, amongst them "The Holy Trinity" (now in the Museo del Prado in Madrid) and "The Assumption of the Virgin" (which now hangs in the Art Institute of Chicago). El Greco remained in Toledo until his death in 1614.

Amongst El Greco's best-known biblical works are "The Adoration of the Magi" (on display at the Museo Soumaya in Mexico City) and "The Disrobing of Christ", his famous altarpiece which is still housed in the Sacristy of the Toledo Cathedral.

Saint Francis was born Giovanni di Pietro di Bernardone but nicknamed Francesco. He is the patron saint of animals, the environment, merchants and stowaways as well Italy and the California city of San Francisco. Other famous paintings depicting Saint Francis include Jan van Eyck's "Saint Francis of Assisi Receiving the Stigmata" (which can be seen at the Philadelphia Museum of Art), Caravaggio's "Saint Francis of Assisi in Ecstasy" (part of the collection at the Wadsworth Atheneum in Hartford CT), "Saint Francis in the Desert" by Giovanni Bellini (part of the Frick Collection) and two works by Spanish artist Francisco de Zurbaran, a portrait that can be seen at the Alte Pinakothek in Munich and "Saint Francis in Meditation" (National Gallery, London).

Answer: Anthony van Dyck

Sir Anthony van Dyck was born in 1599 in the city of Antwerp, then part of the Spanish Netherlands and now in Belgium. Although best-known today for his portraits of the monarch and the royal family during his time as the official court painter to Charles I, his body of work also includes numerous biblical and mythological subjects too.

Van Dyck's portrait of "Christ Carrying the Cross" is a star attraction at the Musei di Strada Nuova in Genoa, Italy and "The Crown of Thorns" can be seen at the Museo del Prado in Madrid. Other saints painted by van Dyck include Saint Ambrose: "Saint Ambrose barring Theodosius I from Milan Cathedral" is on display at the National Gallery in London.

"Saint Jude the Apostle" is part of the collection at the Kunsthistorisches Museum ("Museum of Art History") in Vienna.

Saint Jude is the patron saint of lost causes, hospitals and the Chicago Police Department as well as Armenia, the Philippines and the city of Rio de Janeiro in Brazil.

Answer: Frans Hals the Elder

Born in Antwerp in 1582, Frans Hals spent most of his life in the city of Haarlem in the east of the Netherlands, and today a magnificent statue of him stands in the centre of Florapark at the heart of that city.

Hals is best known for his portraits, both of individuals and groups of local dignitaries and wealthy citizens. One of his most famous work of this type is the "The Banquet of the Officers of the St Adrian Militia Company" that is now part of the collection at the Frans Hals Museum in Haarlem. He also painted less specific portraits: both "Jester with a Lute" and "Gypsy Girl" can be seen at the Louvre in Paris.

"Saint Matthew the Apostle" and also his "Saint Luke" are both on display at the Museum of Western and Eastern Art in Odessa, Ukraine.

Saint Matthew is the patron saint of bankers and tax collectors as well as the city of Palermo on the Italian island of Sicily. Other famous paintings of him include Rembrandt's "Saint Matthew and the Angel" which can be seen at the Louvre-Lens, a subsidiary of the Louvre located in the city of Lens in northern France.

Answer: Tintoretto

Born Jacopo Comin in 1518 in Venice, the son of a dyer, he was nicknamed Tintoretto (meaning "litter dyer"). Known mostly for his religious subjects, Tintoretto's early work includes three masterpieces done for the Church of Madonna dell'Orto in Venice, "Worship of the Golden Calf", "Presentation of the Virgin in the Temple" and "The Last Judgment". He is probably best remembered for the very last project that he completed, reputedly the largest painting ever done on canvas, the massive (74-feet by 30-feet) "Paradise" which is now part of the collection at the Louvre. Tintoretto had assistance with many of his paintings (including both "Paradise" and our featured work) from his son, Domenico Tintoretto, who was responsible for much of the detailing.

Saint Stephen, who was stoned to death in Jerusalem in 34 A.D., is considered the first Christian martyr. He is the patron saint of horses, casket makers, headaches (who even knew they had or needed a patron saint?) and masons as well as the Republic of Serbia. Another famous painting depicting the death of Saint Stephen, by Paolo Uccello, is housed in the Duomo in the Tuscan city of Prato (which also has Stephen as its patron saint). A fabulous portrait of Saint Stephen by the Spanish artist Luis de Morales is on display at the Prado in Madrid.

Answer: Peter Paul Rubens

We have come across the work of Flemish master Sir Peter Paul Rubens elsewhere in our virtual gallery, and the 'Rubenesque' cherubs accompanying Saint Augustine in this painting are a clue to the identity of the artist. Completed just two years before the artist's death at the age of 62 in 1640, this was one of Rubens' last major works, and quite an undertaking it was too, standing more than eight and a half feet tall and nearly six feet across (103x69 inches).

Rubens' body of work shows his amazing versatility, with portraits, landscapes, history paintings and numerous works based on biblical and mythological scenes and people. He could easily have appeared numerous times in this room of our gallery: his portrait of Saint Simon the Zealot is part of his "Twelve Apostles series" on display at the Museo do Prado in Madrid. His wonderful "Martyrdom of Saint Thomas" is the companion work to our featured painting and they hang side by side at the National Gallery in Prague, Czech Republic.

Saint Augustine is the patron saint of theologians, printers and brewers. Other notable artistic depictions of him include "The Conversion of St. Augustine" by the Early Italian Renaissance painter Fra Angelico (which can be seen at the Musée des beaux-arts Thomas Henry in Cherbourg, France), "St. Augustine in His Study" by the Venetian Vittore Carpaccio (housed at the Scuola di San Giorgio degli Schiavoni in Venice, alongside his "St. George and the Dragon") and "Saint Augustine in His Study" by Sandro Botticelli which is displayed at the Uffizi in Florence.

Answer: Diego Velazquez

We have seen plenty of examples of work by Diego Velazquez in other rooms of our virtual gallery. Our featured painting is one of his fairly rare non-portraits, although he did paint other religious figures. His portrait of Pope Innocent X, which is housed at the Galleria Doria Pamphilj in Rome, has been rated as the "finest portrait ever created". His magnificent portrait of Saint Paul (on display at the Museu Nacional d'Art de Catunya in Barcelona) might have appeared elsewhere in this room of our gallery.

Born Tommaso d'Aquino in 1255 in the town of Roccasecca, then part of the Kingdom of Sicily but actually not far outside Rome, Thomas Aquinas is the patron saint of academics, book sellers, school, universities, chastity, students and pencil makers amongst others. Other artistic works in which he features include "The Triumph of St Thomas Aquinas" by Italian Renaissance painter Benozzo Gozzoli which can be seen at the Louvre.

Answer: Rembrandt

We have seen plenty of examples of work by Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn in earlier rooms. Probably the most important of all Dutch artists, he is arguably the greatest of all portrait painters. Some of his most famous paintings of biblical scenes include "The Raising of Lazarus" (on display at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art) and "The Descent from the Cross", which can be seen at the Alte Pinakothek in Munich. Amongst his portraits of biblical figures are the amazing "Self-portrait as the Apostle Paul" which is part of the collection at the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam.

The whereabouts of Rembrandt's "Saint James the Elder" can be traced back to the middle of the 18th century. It was last on public display at the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, Massachusetts between 1991 and 2005. In January 2007, though, it was part of the sale of the Shippy Foundation collection that fetched more than $25 million at Sotheby's in New York City. The buyer was anonymous and the current location of this masterpiece unknown.

Saint James, son of Zebedee, is the patron saint of veterinarians, equestrians, furriers, tanners and pharmacists in addition to the Kingdom of Spain.