Saint Teresa of Ávila Interceding for Souls in Purgatory

The painting is executed in oil on a wooden panel measuring 64.1 by 48.9 cm. It presents a multi-figure religious scene in which Teresa of Ávila intercedes amid depictions of purgatory, souls, angels, and Christ. The handling reflects the workshop tradition of Peter Paul Rubens, emphasizing dramatic lighting and emotional intensity.

Catalogued as a work of the workshop of Peter Paul Rubens and dated 1700, well after the master's death in 1640, the panel later passed through the collection of J. Pierpont Morgan and entered the Metropolitan Museum of Art as part of his bequest. No record of the specific commission survives.

This oil-on-wood panel, titled Saint Teresa of Ávila Interceding for Souls in Purgatory, is a smaller-scale rendition produced in the workshop of Peter Paul Rubens. It replicates a larger altarpiece Rubens created between 1630 and 1633 for the Discalced Carmelite church in Antwerp. The Metropolitan Museum of Art acquired this 64.1 by 48.9 centimeter painting in 1917 through a gift from J. Pierpont Morgan. It depicts Saint Teresa's vision of souls in Purgatory, a theme central to Carmelite devotion.

The original altarpiece, from which this panel derives, was commissioned for a chapel within the Church of the Discalced Carmelites in Antwerp. Its patronage came from Felipa Mendes, a prominent figure in Antwerp's Portuguese merchant community. The choice of subject, Saint Teresa's intercession for souls in Purgatory, directly aligned with the Carmelite order's spiritual mission and devotional practices, emphasizing their role in aiding the salvation of the departed.

The original altarpiece's composition gained wider recognition through an engraving by Schelte à Bolswert. This print included a Latin inscription that explicitly identified Bernardino de Mendoza, further clarifying the narrative for a broader audience. The circulation of this engraving played a crucial role in disseminating Rubens's design and the devotional theme of Saint Teresa's intercession across various Catholic regions, extending its influence beyond the Antwerp church.