Juan de las Roelas: Martyrdom of saint Andrew (1610 - 1615)

(Museum of Fine Arts of Seville, Sevilla, Spain)

A painting by the Flemish artist Juan de las Roelas (1570 – 1625). Although Juan de las Roelas was born in Flanders, he worked his entire life in Spain, especially in Valladolid and Sevilla. This painting was commissioned for the Chapel of the Flemish in the Saint Thomas Church in Sevilla as saint Andrew is also the patron saint of the Netherlands and Flanders (the term 'Flemish' was loosely used in the Middle ages to denote people from Netherlands and Flanders). The apostle was martyred by crucifixion at the city of Patras in Greece. At the request of the saint, he was crucified on a X-shaped cross (now known as a "Saint Andrew's Cross") as the saint considered himself unworthy to be crucified on the same type of cross as Jesus had been. Painting from 1610-1615.