San Pietro Polyptych

This was a big commission. In 1495 Perugino signed a contract to paint a towering altarpiece for the abbey church of San Pietro in Perugia, and he delivered it over the following years, with the finished work unveiled in January 1500. At its centre rose the Ascension of Christ, the risen Christ lifted into a golden sky above the watching apostles. In 1608 the church was remodelled and the great structure was taken apart, its panels scattered, several later carried off to France under Napoleon. The central Ascension and the arched panel of God above it hang today in Lyon, while other fragments are spread between French and Italian collections.