Martyrdom of St Lawrence
by TIZIANO Vecellio, Oil on canvas, 440 x 320 cm
In December of 1567 Titian sent to Spain his second Martyrdom of St Lawrence, destined for the high altar of the monastic church of St Lawrence at the Escorial. Here too, he repeats the composition used earlier for the altarpiece of the same subject for the church of the Crociferi, completed in 1559, but handles it in a more tortured way, giving free rein to the expressiveness of his late style.