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Barreled vaulted ceiling of the cathedral.
The interior of St John was largely decorated by Mattia Preti, the well-known Calabrian artist. Preti designed the intricate carved stone walls and painted the vaulted ceiling and side altars with scenes from the life of St John. The figures painted into the ceiling next to each column initially appear to the viewer as 3 dimensional statues, but on closer inspection one can see that the artist cleverly created an illusion of 3 dimensionality by his use of shadows and placement.
And do you know how much Preti was paid for his work? Unbelievable but it is true – it is said that he was not paid a single penny for his work but was made a Knight of Grace in the Order. At his time the Order had gradually been transformed into an elitist group made up of the children of the highest nobilities in Europe and Preti was not one of them. Preti’s reward was by being knighted in the Order of St John and Malta.
Thank you very much for looking and for your wonderful comments on yesterday's picture
