Marriage at Cana

Painting by the Venetian artist Veronese, 1652–53 (Louvre, Paris). It depicts the first miracle of Jesus, when he turned water into wine at a marriage feast at Cana in Galilee. This is one of the finest works of the Venetian High Renaissance, and was originally executed for the refectory of the Benedictines of S Giorgio Maggiore in Venice.

Containing more than 130 figures in a palatial setting, this huge painting, opulent in its detail and general conception, caused Veronese to be interrogated by the Inquisition for worldly treatment of a religious subject. The artist introduced the portraits of many contemporaries, Charles V, Francis I, Sultan Suleiman II, the poet Aretino, and Vittoria Colonna among them. Venetian painters – Titian, Bassano, Tintoretto, and Veronese himself – are portrayed as musicians and many anonymous figures represent aspects of luxurious Venetian life.