The Baptism of Christ

Having trained under the Carracci, and in particular Ludovico, Mastelletta went to Rome in 1610, where he probably turned to the group of artists around Adam Elsheimer, Carlo Saraceni and Agostino Tassi, all of whom painted landscapes enlivened by small, vivid figures. Inspired by these artists he created a highly personal style, painting mysterious landscapes in which biblical or mythological scenes are situated. The present picture was probably painted during his sojourn in Rome and can be compared stylistically with, for example, The Crossing of the Red Sea, Moses Parting the Waters, the Fête Champêtre and Soldiers on the March (all Rome, Galleria Spada) and Christ in the Wilderness Served by Angels in a private collection in Parma (see the catalogue of the exhibition, Pittura del Seicento Emiliano, Bologna, Pinacoteca Civica, 1959, nos. 19ff.).