Explore the Frescos of this artwork.
Fra Angelico depicted a Deposition of Christ (the removal of Christ from the Cross) on the wall behind the altar, but it has been destroyed. However, his other works in the lunettes are well preserved.The scenes of St. Stephen follow the Biblical account in the Acts of the Apostles, while those of St. Laurence are patterned after the older cycles in the basilica of San Lorenzo fuori le Mura, where he is buried. Stephen was a Greek-speaking Jew, one of the first deacons named in Jerusalem by St. Peter – Ordination of St Stephen with St Stephen distributing Alms (lunette). His prayers (The Prayer of St. Stephen) earned him the hostility of his opponents in the city, who eventually stoned him to death in front of the city gate.
Laurence was a deacon (Ordination of St Laurence) to whom Pope Sixtus II had entrusted the Church's treasure in order to give it to the Roman emperor Valerian (St. Lawrence Receiving the Treasures of the Church). Lawrence instead divided it among the poor (St Laurence distributing Alms), an act for which he was martyred. The frescoes underline the similarities in the lives of the two figures: both were ordained deacons, both gave alms to the poor and both were martyred after a courageous declaration of faith. The choice of the two saints also shows the connection between the Churches of Jerusalem and the Rome.
The frescoes, full of fine architectural details, allude also to Nicholas V's desire to rebuild Rome as the new capital city of Christianity. The large walls in the Martyrdom of St. Stephen hint at the rebuilding of Rome's walls. Further, the schism in the Jewish community in Jerusalem can be compared to the Christian schism witnessed by Nicholas (who is portrayed in the frescoes as Pope Sixtus II).
St. Peter St. Stephen San Lorenzo fuori le Mura St. Laurence Fra Angelico Valerian Pope Sixtus II Deposition of Christ Pope lunette Fresco Sixtus II