Heliodorus Steals Treasures from the Temple

This is an early work by the Venetian master which formed part of a high frieze in San Sebastiano, the Jesuit church in Verona. Removed and brought to the museum, it survived the fate of the rest of the frieze, destroyed during World War II. Classicizing effects are overwhelmed by the irrepressible exuberance of the artist, whose virtuosity is already evident in the long, dense, deftly applied brushtrokes.