Saint Cecilia

In the pictureIn front of a red curtain, a young woman plays a keyboard instrument and lifts her head to look upward. On the left, two winged angels hold open a sheet of music and look at it together, and the woman's garments layer silver-gray, gold and green. The red interior of the instrument and the curtain supply the picture's warm colors.

BackgroundCecilia is the patron saint of musicians, and she is shown with instruments because of the legend that at her martyrdom she sang to God in her heart. Abraham van Diepenbeeck was a painter in Antwerp who worked in and around Rubens's workshop, and Rubens's influence shows plainly in this picture's upturned face, plump angels and ample folds of drapery.

Puzzle tipThe red curtain, the silver-gray dress, the flesh tones and the keyboard instrument separate well by color. Assemble the three faces and the hands first, then connect the red curtain pieces from top to bottom along the bright lines of the folds. The keyboard pieces are on the easier side, since the rows of black and white keys show their direction.