Fra  Angelico
Scenes from the Story of St. Nicholas

The three paintings on the predella of the Perugia Triptych depict the story of St Nicholas.

This is the first predella painting, showing the saint's birth, his vocation, and his gift of dowries to three maidens. According to the first part of the Golden Legend's life of Nicholas he was a precocious infant, able to stand up in his washing-basin just minutes after being born, as shown on the left side of this image.

The right side depicts the saint's anonymous gift of gold to the poor man with three daughters, another episode from the Golden Legend.

In the middle we see St. Nicholas attending the sermon that inspired him to become a priest; this episode is not in the Golden Legend.

Also available:

• Detail of the left side of this painting
• Detail of the right side of this painting
• The second predella painting
• A detail from the third predella painting