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This small fragmentary panel once belonged to the predella of the triptych, painted by Masolino and Masaccio between 1423 and 1424 for the altar of the Carnesecchi family in the church of Santa Maria Maggiore in Florence. Masaccio and Masolino’s altarpiece was later dismantled, and its various parts were dispersed in the mid-seventeenth century, when the church was renovated in Baroque style.
The Horne Museum’s fragment illustrates the Story of Saint Julian, who, deceived by the devil, killed his parents in their bed, having mistaken them for his wife and her lover. After realising his error, Saint Julian led a life of expiation, helping the sick and the leprous.
Despite its poor state of conservation, the work bears witness to the innovative qualities of the painting of Masaccio, who gave three-dimensional definition to his figures, and firmly situated them in a realistic space.