Francisco de GoyaSpanish, 1746–1828Saint Ambrose
Can I see it?
Yes, on view now
Where is “Saint Ambrose” now? The Cleveland Museum of Art, 201 Neoclassical Painting & Sculpture, Cleveland. Yes, on view now. Checked September 29, 2026.
On public display.
- Checked
- In this state since
- Source
- The museum
About the painting
This work belongs to a series depicting Ambrose, Jerome, Augustine, and Gregory, key figures of early Catholicism. Saint Ambrose (about AD 340–391), the bishop of Milan, resolved important theological conflicts within the church and worked effectively with advocates of Roman paganism. The low viewpoint and large scale suggest that this painting hung high on the wall of a religious institution, but its original location remains unknown. In the late 1700s, Spain expelled all the Jesuits and sparked a transformation of the church. Many of these reformers turned back to early church history for inspiration, and this painting was probably commissioned by one of these new organizations.
The Cleveland Museum of Art
Details
- Accession number
- 1969.23
In the catalog
Sources
- The Cleveland Museum of Art
- Image: The Cleveland Museum of Art — Museum open access
In the life of Francisco de Goya
The whole life1773–1823 · Workplace
Madrid
1795
Director of Painting at the Academy
He was elected Director of Painting at the Academy of San Fernando with a salary of 4,000 reales; that same year he painted portraits of the Duke and Duchess of Alba.
January – May 1796
Journey to Andalusia and the Sanlúcar Album
He traveled to Andalusia with the royal court; in May he stayed at the Alba family palace in Sanlúcar, where the Sanlúcar Album with his first studies from life came into being.
February 1799
Publication of "Los Caprichos"
The series of 80 etchings "Los Caprichos" was published and sold in a perfume shop on the Calle del Desengaño; owing to the intervention of the Inquisition, only 27 sets were sold.
31 October 1799
First Court Painter
He was appointed First Court Painter with a salary of 50,000 reales a year — the highest rank for a Spanish court painter.
