Study for "The Martyrdom of Saint Sebastian" (for the Augustinian monastery at Diessen, Germany)

Giovanni Battista Tiepolo

Cleveland Museum of Art

A painting of a man tied to a tree. The man has medium length curly hair and a beard. He has his arms raised above his head, hands tied to the tree. He is wearing a white cloth wrapped around his waist. A cherub flies on a cloud above him. Many people surround him. Some are dressed in armor. Four people are beating him. One person on the left is wearing black pants and a blue shirt and is using a club to hit the man. Another man to his right is wearing a red headband, white pants, and a yellow tunic. He is raising a club. A child stands in front of him. A fourth man on the right is on the ground wearing red pants and a green and white shirt. He holds a handful of arrows. A few people stand behind them. There are buildings and cloudy skies in the background. The man tied to the tree and people around him are the main focus.