When Artemisia Gentileschi painted A Woman presenting her Child to Saint Blaise in 1630, she was at the height of her fame, newly arrived in Naples and sought after by local patrons. This work is one of the few surviving examples of her engagement with Neapolitan devotional subjects, and its commission likely reflects the city’s deep-rooted veneration of Saint Blaise, a protector against throat ailments. Unlike her more celebrated biblical heroines, here Gentileschi turns her attention to a saint whose cult was especially strong in southern Italy, where the faithful would bring their children to be blessed on his feast day each February. The painting captures the moment a mother, her face tense with hope, presents her young child to Saint Blaise, the bishop-martyr renowned for miraculous healings.

Blaise, robed in episcopal vestments and holding the characteristic iron comb of his martyrdom, extends his hand in blessing, his gaze gentle yet authoritative. The composition draws the eye to the physical contact between saint and child, underscoring the theme of intercession. Gentileschi’s use of dramatic lighting, with the figures emerging from a dark background, recalls the tenebrism of Caravaggio, yet her handling of the mother’s gesture—at once desperate and trusting—adds a psychological depth that distinguishes her approach from, for example, the more formal treatments by Giovanni Lanfranco. While the precise early history of A Woman presenting her Child to Saint Blaise remains uncertain, it is generally agreed that Gentileschi painted it during her first years in Naples, a period marked by prolific output and new religious commissions.

The painting’s whereabouts were unknown for much of the nineteenth century, and its attribution has occasionally been questioned due to the scarcity of securely documented works from this phase of her career. Today, it stands as a testament to Gentileschi’s versatility, bridging her Roman training with the devotional fervor of Neapolitan art. The work is now housed in a private collection, rarely exhibited, and remains a touchstone for scholars tracing the evolution of Artemisia Gentileschi’s late style.