National Picture Gallery (Pinacoteca Nazionale di Bologna)

The most significant works of the school of painting that flourished in Bologna from the 14th century to the heyday of the baroque have been assembled under one roof in this second-floor pinacoteca. The gallery also houses works by other major Italian artists, such as Raphael's St. Cecilia in Estasi. Guido Reni (1575-1642) of Bologna steals the scene with his St. Sebastian and Pietà, along with his penetrating St. Andrea Corsini, The Slaying of the Innocents, and idealized Samson the Victorious. Other Reni works are The Flagellation of Christ, The Crucifixion, and his masterpiece, Ritratto della Madre (a revealing portrait of his mother that must surely have inspired Whistler). Then seek out Vitale de Bologna's (1330-61) rendition of St. George slaying the dragon -- a theme in European art that parallels Moby-Dick in America. Also displayed are works by Francesco Francia, and especially noteworthy is a polyptych attributed to Giotto.

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