#AntiqueMasterpieces"As part of Sotheby’s Most Famous Artworks in the World series, this episode of Anatomy of an Artwork examines El Greco’s The Tears of St. Peter, located in the Museo Soumaya, Mexico City. The artist depicts St. Peter as resoundingly human, despite his status as one of the 12 apostles and a commanding figure in Catholic Theology. With an eye for realism, El Greco carefully details the musculature of St. Peter’s arms, his striking white hair, and expressive, tear-filled eyes. St. Peter seeks forgiveness after denying his faith in Christ, and we see his hands clenched in prayer and eyes cast to heaven above. Completed in the late 16th century, The Tears of St. Peter immortalizes El Greco’s genius and serves as a reminder to all Christians that redemption is always achievable.
The Tears of St. Peter by Domenikos Theotokopoulos,
popularly known as El Greco, is a highlight of the Museo Sumaya collection in Mexico City.
One of at least six versions completed by the artist, this 16th century oil on canvas
details St. Peter's crisis of faith. The fisherman from Bethsaida became one of the 12 apostles
and a key figure in Catholic theology, but as this work illustrates he was a man with a
conflicted soul. This devotional painting measures 38 by 31 inches and was completed circa 1587
to 1596 in Toledo in central Spain during El Greco's mature period and at the height of the
The work is also known as Penitent St. Peter. It is a study of inner turmoil.
St. Peter denied his faith in Jesus three times before reaffirming it,
and here he is pictured with his eyes cast to heaven looking for forgiveness. His hands are
clenched in prayer and his welling tears are evidence of his sorrow and regret for his weakness.
El Greco details the saint's features in his celebrated elongated style. The apostle's
physicality, the musculature of his arms, thick gray hair and beard and thick set neck is rendered
with an eye for realism. This is a man, not simply a symbol. Hanging from St. Peter's wrist
are the keys of heaven given to him by Christ. In the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus tells him,
I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven and whatever you bind on earth
shall be bound in heaven and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. Consequently,
Peter became the first bishop of Rome. The canvas has been cut down on the left-hand side,
cropping an incongruous scene towards the bottom in which Mary Magdalene is shown leaving the empty
holy sepulchre following the resurrection. The original composition is likely to have included
the tomb's guardian angel. The Museo Summaia acquired the painting in 1998. Subsequent
restoration reinstated the original colors of the robe and cloak which had been overpainted
and discovered elements of the artist's signature inscribed on the tree stump seen in the lower left
corner. For many Christians, St. Peter's story is a potent one. The penitent apostle remains a beacon
for all those whose faith has wavered, guiding them back onto the road to salvation.
Immortalized by El Greco, St. Peter is not only saintly, he is profoundly human.
