Saints Nicholas of Tolentino and John the Baptist

Giovanni Martino Spanzotti's Saints Nicholas of Tolentino and John the Baptist in the National Gallery, a companion to his Saint Peter Martyr panel, further demonstrates the Piedmontese master's competence in the altarpiece wing format. Nicholas of Tolentino, an Augustinian friar canonized in 1446, was a relatively recent saint when Spanzotti painted this panel, his cult centered on miraculous cures and intercession for souls in purgatory. His pairing with John the Baptist — the forerunner of Christ — creates a complementary diptych of intercessors, both figures whose lives embodied radical dedication to spiritual preparation.

Nicholas appears in black Augustinian habit with his characteristic star emblem, John the Baptist in his camel-hair robe. The two saints occupy a unified shallow space. Spanzotti's competent handling of varied textures — rough camel hair, smooth fabric — distinguishes the figures through material contrast.