In the lower part of the painting we see the saint laid into the grave by three men. On her body there are no marks of martyrdom or deformations. The scene is accompanied by women and children on the left side and a group of men of various ages on the right. One of them seems to stand out from among them – an elegantly dressed, the most interested and apparently belonging to the upper class youth. The upper part of the painting depicts the miraculous ascension of Petronilla, kneeling in front of Christ who opens up his arms towards her. The figures accompanying the burial seem to actively participate in the event: the women mourn or are deep in thought, the youth bends over the corpse of the woman disappearing in the grave, the men are actively commenting the whole scene. In the background there is a fragment of a temple and the remains of a base after the no longer existing monumental column. Both of these recall the times of antiquity, reminding us of the fact that the saint died during the times of Christian persecutions, but they also suggest a quick demise and fall of paganism.

The composition is characterized by a balanced play of diagonals, thanks to which the artist achieved both the expression of the earthly event as well as the peace and dignity of the scene of the saint’s apotheosis. The magnificent azure dominant in the painting is supplemented by browns and beiges, which divide the scene into three, colorfully intertwining parts.

What does this scene actually represent? Most likely the lack of clear information regarding Petronilla spurred the artist to show her at the moment of being laid into the grave. In this way he did justice to all the legends which have accumulated over time. The only information which we can get from the painting is the young age of the woman and her legendary beauty as well as the existence of the mysterious figure of a youth with a white cloth in his hand, accompanying her all the way to the grave. Is this a morality play elevating the virtue of virginity to the status of sainthood and depicting Petronilla, who has made the choice between earthly and heavenly love? This idea, so very much alive during the times of early Christianity, in which virgins were treated with particular respect, while marriage was seen, in accordance with St. Paul, as something that was unnecessary and designated for those, who were unable to deal with temptations of the flesh, seventeen centuries later had once again found glorification in Guercino’s painting. The return to the topic of life and death of early-Christian martyrs, which is strongly accentuated by the art of the post-Trent Church (Council of Trent) in this way found its perfect embodiment. In case of other, equally often recalled figures of Roman virgins (St. Agnes, St. Cecilia) both their chastity and heroism of the martyrdom were emphasized, however in Petronilla’s case simply remaining a virgin is treated as a heroic act. However, the author of the painting focuses on something else as well: he shows the viewer its second act – the encounter with Christ as the heavenly bridegroom in the afterlife, which is the reward and the goal of an exemplary life. This mystical wedding, which can be witnessed on Baroque altars – St. Theresa or St Catherine of Siena and which these mystics experience in life, in this case were transferred into the extraterrestrial dimension. The proof of such an interpretation is the fact that, Petronilla is laid into the grave in a wreath suggesting virginity, while in heaven she no longer has it. The nude, beautiful body of Christ, with only his genitals covered, his arms open wide in a gesture of greeting but also devotion, seem to suggest the reward awaiting Petronilla. This is a crown (or perhaps a wedding diadem), carried at the moment of Christ’s meeting with Petronilla by an angel, who clearly resembles cupid.

At the beginning of the XIX century the painting found itself in a collection of objects stolen by Napoleon Bonaparte, which adorned the Louvre. It returned to Rome similarly to numerous works of art in 1818 thanks to the endeavors of Antonio Canova and is presently part of the Capitoline collection (Musei Capitolini – Pinacoteca).

In the Altar of St. Petronilla in St. Peter’s Basilica, we can still witness this scene today. This however is not a canvas but a mosaic imitating it.

Guercino, The Funeral of St. Petronilla, 1623, 720 x 423 cm, Pinacoteca Capitolina (Musei Capitolini)