Artwork

Szene aus dem Leben des Hl. Vinzenz Ferrer: Der Heilige erhält vom Papst die Erlaubnis, das Evangelium überall durch Predigt zu verkünden

Szene aus dem Leben des Hl. Vinzenz Ferrer: Der Heilige erhält vom Papst die Erlaubnis, das Evangelium überall durch Predigt zu verkünden is an unspecified painting by Agnolo degli Erri. It is held in the collection of the Kunsthistorisches Museum.

About this work

Overview

Agnolo degli Erri’s panel portrays Saint Vincent Ferrer being granted papal authority to disseminate the Gospel through preaching. Executed in the early 15th‑century Quattrocento idiom, the work belongs to a larger group of devotional narratives produced in Modena. It is presently conserved in the Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna.

Subject & Meaning

The composition centers on the moment the papal delegate confers official sanction upon the Dominican friar, symbolising the Church’s endorsement of itinerant evangelism. The gathering of clerics and lay witnesses underscores the communal significance of the papal decree for the wider faithful.

Technique & Style

Rendered in the Gothic tradition that persisted into the Italian Renaissance, the painting features a high, arched interior with elaborate carved ornamentation. Rich pigments and careful modeling of fabrics—white headgear, black robe with an orange collar—create a tactile sense of depth, while subtle chiaroscuro enhances the three‑dimensionality of the figures.

History & Provenance

Created by Agnolo degli Erri, who worked alongside his brothers on a series of saintly episodes for local patrons, the panel later entered the collection of the Kunsthistorisches Museum. Its acquisition reflects the museum’s broader effort to represent Northern Italian Quattrocento painting.

Context

The work belongs to a period when Modenese workshops were integrating Gothic decorative vocabulary with emerging Renaissance naturalism. Depicting a contemporary saint’s papal endorsement, the painting aligns with the era’s emphasis on institutional authority and the promotion of preaching as a means of reform.