Florence – Uffizi Gallery (Saint Luke the Evangelist)

The provenance of the artworks in the Uffizi is quite outstanding, although it’s not known which Franciscan church in Florence this was originally painted for. It was painted in around 1280 to 1290 and there’s a Poor Clare and a Franciscan friar at the saint’s feet. It was moved to Church of SS. Annunziata in the city at some stage, where it remained until 1881 when it came to the Uffizi Gallery. It was on display there until 1936, when it was moved to the Accademia Gallery.

The painting arrived at Montegufoni Castle on 19 November 1942, taken there to protect it from damage or theft during the Second World War. It returned to the Accademia Gallery on 19 July 1945 and was moved to the Uffizi Gallery in August 1948, where it has remained since. It has been restored twice in the twentieth century and is now in Room 1 of the gallery’s collections. The artwork’s frame is original and it has vibrant colours, although how much of that is due to the restorations I’ll never know…..