Insect larvae, splits, drips and dribbles make this painting’s conservation a revealing project in more ways than one.

The work of two brothers, Antonio and Piero del Pollaiuolo, ‘The Martyrdom of Saint Sebastian’ is one of the first paintings in Florence to be painted in oil. What happens when artists experiment with new media and, with two people working on the same painting, is it possible to tell who painted what?

Join Conservators Alysia Sawicka and Hayley Tomlinson as they share what the practical conservation and technical examination told us about this huge altarpiece.

They also provide a demonstration of the pouncing technique the artists would have used to transfer their drawing onto the panel before painting it.
? Find out more about 'The Martyrdom of Saint Sebastian': https://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/paintings/antonio-del-pollaiuolo-and-piero-del-pollaiuolo-the-martyrdom-of-saint-sebastian
?️ Find out more about Antonio and Piero del Pollaiuolo: https://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/artists/antonio-del-pollaiuolo
https://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/artists/piero-del-pollaiuolo
Bank of America is the National Gallery’s Conservation Partner.
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