The Incredulity of Saint Thomas (Stom) facts for kids
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The Incredulity of Saint Thomas is a famous oil painting by Matthias Stom. He painted it between 1640 and 1649. This artwork is now kept in the Museo del Prado in Madrid, Spain. The painting shows a moment when Saint Thomas doubts that Jesus has come back to life after being crucified.
Stom made another version of this painting, which is in a private collection in Italy. Both paintings were created while Stom was living in Sicily. The way Stom arranged the figures in the Prado painting was inspired by other artists. He looked at similar works by Hendrick ter Brugghen and Peter Paul Rubens.
The Painting's History
This painting first appeared in official records after a big fire in 1734. The fire happened at the Royal Alcázar of Madrid, a royal palace. The painting was one of the artworks saved from the flames. At that time, people thought it was just a copy of a painting by another artist named Guercino.
Later, in 1772, another list of artworks was made for the Royal Palace in Madrid. In this new list, the painting was thought to be an original work by Stom's teacher, Gerard van Honthorst. This idea that Honthorst painted it lasted for a very long time, until 1963!
Then, for a short time, people believed Hendrick ter Brugghen was the artist. But a person named Arthur von Schneider was the first to suggest that Matthias Stom was the true painter. Many years later, in 1985, a special book about artworks finally confirmed that Stom was indeed the artist.
See also
In Spanish: La incredulidad de Santo Tomás (Stom) para niños
- List of paintings by Matthias Stom
