Works of Art Removed from

Sant' Agostino

Madonna di Sant' Agostino (early 14th century)

This polychrome wooden figure of the Madonna and Child, which is sometimes attributed to Ambrogio Maitani, was recorded in the 16th century in a niche in a pilaster to the right of the apse, the decoration of which was financed by the Cantagallina family.   It was moved to another location in the church during the remodelling of 1803 and was subsequently moved to the convent for reasons of security.  It entered the Galleria Nazionale (Room 4) in 1958.

Stained glass (ca. 1345)

This window from the sacristy by Giovanni di Bonino, which depicts the Crucifixion with the Virgin and St John the Evangelist, is now in the Galleria Nazionale (Room 4).

Pentecost (1403)

This altarpiece from Sant' Agostino, which is signed by Taddeo di Bartolo di Mino and dated, depicts Christ sending the Holy Spirit in the form of a dove to the Virgin and Apostles.  It is now in the Galleria Nazionale (Room 5).

Madonna and Child with angels (1470s)

This panel, which depicts the Madonna and Child in a mandorla, is attributed to Bartolomeo Caporali.  It has been cut out of a larger panel, as is evident from the truncated figures of two angels below.  It was recorded in 1863 in the sacristy prior to its move to the Galleria Nazionale (Room 15/16).

Tezi Altarpiece (1500)

The inscriptions that form part of the predella of this altarpiece record that Berardino di ser Angelo commissioned it in 1500 for his family chapel in the church.  (By the 18th century, this family had acquired the surname "Tezi").   The altarpiece is usually attributed to Perugino, but was generally regarded as a workshop production until its recent restoration revealed its quality.  It remained in its original location until 1653, when it was moved and subsequently dismembered.

  • The main panel, which depicts the Madonna and Child with SS Nicholas of Tolentino and Bernardino, remained in the church until 1863, when it was transferred to the Galleria Nazionale (Room 22).

  • The predella, which depicts the Last Supper, was probably stolen during the French occupation of Perugia in 1797.  It turned up in a private collection in Frankfurt in 1833, when it was sold to the Staatliche Museen, Berlin.

Sant' Agostino Polyptych (1502-23)

Mattia di Tommaso da Reggio built the frame for this huge, double-sided altarpiece for the high altar in 1495 -1500, and Perugino was commissioned in 1502 to paint some 30 panels for it.  Progress was slow and the friars resorted to litigation, before renewing Perugino’s contract in 1512.  They returned to the fray again in 1520, pressing him to complete his work by 1521.  It must have been largely complete by the time of his death in 1523 because his executors requested final payment. 

The altarpiece was dismantled in 1654 and the panels were displayed at various locations in the church, ending up in a store room as part of the restoration of the 1794. 

  • Napoleon's commissioner, Jacques-Pierre Tinet selected seven panels for confiscation  in 1797.  Antonio Canova recovered one of these, a Pietà , in 1815 and it now serves as an altarpiece in the left aisle of  San Pietro.

  • The others were moved to the Galleria Nazionale in 1863.  The most important of these are exhibited in (Room 25). 

  • The twelve predella panels are also in the gallery, although only two are exhibited (Room 26). 

Adoration of the Magi (1505)

Giorgio Vasari recorded this altarpiece, which he attributed to Eusebio da San Giorgio, in the church.  Later authors added that it in the Cappella degli Oddi.  Vasari's attribution is generally accepted, although it is sometimes given to Eusebio da San Giorgio and a collaborator.  The inscription on the hem of the Virgin’s gown records the date.   The predella of the altarpiece was lost in 1863, when the main panel was moved to the gallery Galleria Nazionale (Room 27).

Capra Altarpiece (early 16th century)

Giorgio Vasari noted that Perugino painted an altarpiece for Benedetto "Calera" in the Cappella di San Nicolò da Tolentino.  In fact, Vasari had misread the name in the (now lost) inscription, which later writers record as Benedictus di Benedictis cognomine Capra".  This family was related to the Tezi family, and their altarpiece (which is dated on stylistic grounds to the early 16th century, despite frequent references to another inscription on the now-lost predella that recorded the date as 1471) was probably painted shortly after the Perugino's Tezi Altarpiece (see above) in the same church.  The work has recently been attributed to Perugino and Giovanni Battista Caporali.

The altarpiece remained in its original location until 1653 and was then moved to other locations in the church.  It was removed to the convent in 1794 before the start of the re-modelling of the church interior. Napoleon's commissioner, Jacques-Pierre Tinet selected it for confiscation  in 1797:

  • The main panel, which depicts the Madonna and Child with SS Jerome and Augustine, was sent from Paris to Bordeaux in 1803.  It is in now in the Musée des Beaux Arts, Bordeaux.

  • Two predella panels depicting miracles of St Nicholas of Tolentino, which probably belonged to the altarpiece are now in the Institute of Arts, Detroit .

Madonna and Child with saints (1509)

This altarpiece, which is dated by inscription,  seems to be the work that Bartolomeo di Lorenzo commissioned from Eusebio da San Giorgio in 1506 for his family chapel.  The contract specified that the work should be similar to another in the church, Perugino's Tezi Altarpiece (see above).  The initials LA SI at the end of the inscription might indicate the involvement of two associates of Eusebio: Lodovico d’ Angelo and Sinibaldo Ibi.  The altarpiece passed to the Galleria Nazionale in 1863 and is now in the deposit there.

Madonna and Child with saints (1518)

According to the inscriptions, Luca Alberto Podiani commissioned this altarpiece in 1518 from Sinibaldo Ibi.  [Luca Alberto Podiani (1474-1551) was a celebrated doctor and scholar, rector of the Sapienza Vecchia in the period 1504-20.]

There are two possibilities for its original location:

  • the Convento di Monteripido, where, according to his will of 1548, Luca wished to be buried; or

  • Sant’ Agostino, where Luca was actually buried in 1555, in his family chapel that was dedicated to St Leonard).

It is now in the deposit of the Galleria Nazionale.

Madonna and Child with saints (1524)

Severo di Paride Petrini commissioned this altarpiece, which is dated, from Domenico Alfani for his family chapel on the right wall of the church.  The final payment for the work was delayed until 1541.  The altarpiece was removed from the chapel in 1799 church in 1810 and passed to the Accademia di Belle Arti in 1810.  it is now in the deposit of the Galleria Nazionale.

Copy (16th century) of Raphael’s Pala Baglioni

This panel, which is attributed to Orazio Alfani, was first recorded in the sacristy in 1863, the date at which it was transferred to the Galleria Nazionale.  It was restored in 1970 and moved to the right wall of the Oratorio di San Bernardino.

This is the earliest known copy of the main panel of Raphael’s Deposition (1507).  The original, which was still in San Francesco al Prato when this copy was made, was stolen by Cardinal Scipione Borghese in 1608 and is now in the Galleria Borghese, Rome. 

Holy Family with St John the Baptist (1560)

This damaged altarpiece was recorded in the 18th century in the Cappella di Santa Lucia, which belonged to Nicolò Febo degli Scotti, with an attribution to Raffaellino del Colle and the date of 1560.  It entered the Galleria Nazionale (Room 30) from the Accademia di Belle Arti.  

Birth of the Virgin (1561)

The Confraternita di San Crispino (cobblers' guild) seems to have commissioned this altarpiece, which is attributed to Dono Doni, for their altar in Sant' Agostino.  It originally had a predella (now lost) in which the date was inscribed.  It entered the Accademia di Belle Arti following the remodelling of the church in 1794-1803 and is now in the Galleria Nazionale (Room 31).

Madonna and child with saints (ca. 1580)

Alessandro di Girolamo Danzetta commissioned this altarpiece, which is usually attributed to the workshop of Federico Barocci, for his family chapel.  It remained there until 1794, when it was removed to the convent before the start of the re-modelling of the church interior.  Napoleon's commissioner, Jacques-Pierre Tinet selected it for confiscation  in 1797, probably believing that it was the work of Barocci himself.  It is now in the Musée di Louvre, Paris.

Bust of Marcantonio Eugeni (ca. 1640)

This marble bust came from the tomb of Marcantonio Eugeni (died 1657), which was near his family chapel.  (Eugeni worked as a lawyer at the Roman Curia, and was listed as a Roman consul in 1641).  The bust was included in an account of the work of Francesco Mochi that was written in 1730, and the tomb itself featured in guides to the church until its re-modelling at the turn of the 18th century.  The bust is now in the Galleria Nazionale (Room 36).


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