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Veronese completed this painting not long after he was interrogated by the Inquisition in Venice on suspicion of heresy. The inquisitors considered Veronese's depiction of the Last Supper inappropriately sumptuous and festive, and they forced him to alter his painting into one of The Feast in the House of Levi. This may help explain Veronese's choice of subject matter in Saint Anthony Preaching to the Fish, including his humbling self-portrait, the sympathetic portrait of Tintoretto, and the sumptuous treatment of the bystanders.Representations of the sermon to the fish—though not unprecedented before Veronese—are rare in Antonian iconography. Any such representations are usually included as part of larger cycles showing multiple events or miracles in Saint Anthony's life, rather than being standalone works. Some examples perhaps known to Veronese include a 1520 work located in the ante-sacristy of the Basilica of Saint Anthony of Padua and attributed to Gian Martino Tranzapani; the 1535–1537 half lunette fresco by Girolamo Tessari located at the Santuario del Noce in Camposampiero; and a 15th-century cycle by Domenico Morone at San Bernardino, Verona, which was likely still extant during Veronese's lifetime. Since it no longer exists, it is unknown for certain whether Morone's cycle depicted the sermon to the fish. Other known depictions of Saint Anthony preaching to fish include an anonymous 1480 woodcut indicating the sermon occurred in Ravenna (rather than in Rimini), and a circa 1510–1520 engraving probably of Paduan origin with ten panels illustrating Anthony's miracles, including the sermon to the fish. An image of the sermon also appears in the frontispiece of the Compendio volgare della vita & miracolose opere di Santo Antonio ("Vulgar Compendium of the life & miraculous works of Saint Anthony") by Ippolito da Ponte, printed in Venice in 1532.Although representations of the sermon were less widespread than those of other Antonian miracles, the event had a certain fame. Even before Ippolito da Ponte's publication it was extensively treated in Chapter 40 of The Little Flowers of St. Francis, where it is placed firmly in Rimini. Previous writings gave no precise location for the sermon. According to legend, Anthony of Padua was preaching in Romagna to Cathar heretics, who initially rebuffed him. Anthony preached instead to the fish, after which many people came to witness the miracle and hear the sermon. The legend derives from and is related to Francis of Assisi's sermon to the birds, which was itself a common theme in religious paintings: one example of many is the circa 1290–1295 Giotto painting Predica agli uccelli ("Sermon to the Birds").Curiously, the expedient of placing Anthony on a rock or otherwise well above the bystanders is not used in any of the depictions Veronese may have known. It was used as early as the 14th century in stained glass windows at the Basilica of Saint Francis of Assisi, and in the early 1500s by Girolamo Santacroce at the Altar of Saint Anthony in Sant'Anna dei Lombardi Church in Naples, but it is highly unlikely Veronese ever saw either work.
Cathar Rimini Last Supper Naples Camposampiero self-portrait Ravenna Basilica of Saint Anthony of Padua Little Flowers of St. Francis lunette Francis of Assisi fresco sermon to the birds Romagna Tintoretto stained glass frontispiece religious paintings Altar San Bernardino, Verona Gian Martino Tranzapani Anthony of Padua Inquisition miracle heresy Santuario del Noce Girolamo Santacroce hem Basilica of Saint Francis of Assisi sacristy Giotto Girolamo Tessari iconography The Feast in the House of Levi woodcut engraving Vulgar Sant'Anna dei Lombardi Predica agli uccelli sermon to the fish Domenico Morone