An Apostle

In the pictureA brown-haired man wears a brown mantle over a white robe, raises his right index finger to point upward, and holds open in his left hand a scroll with writing on it. His eyes, lifted upward, and his slightly parted lips convey a moment of speaking. The halo behind his head is made by pressing dots and lines into the gold leaf.

BackgroundCarlo Crivelli was from Venice but worked in small towns on Italy's east coast, leaving altarpieces that use gold leaf and relief ornament lavishly. This panel was one compartment of a large altarpiece with a row of saints, and the scroll and pointing gesture are traditional signs of prophecy or teaching. Bold, firm outlines are characteristic of him, and in this painting too the fingers and drapery folds are as crisp as sculpture.

Puzzle tipThe figure fills almost the whole picture, which makes it good for a puzzle. Fit the face, the hands and the writing on the scroll first, and join the white robe and brown mantle along the direction of their folds. The gold background pieces fall into place once you sort them into those with the halo's tooled pattern and those without.