A Saint Sebastian deemed too seductive

The painting representing Saint Sebastian by Fra Bartolomeo was denounced for its lascivious charm pushing young women to sin. Giovanni Paolo Lomazzo reported in 1584 in his Trattato dell'arte de la pittura that this work troubled the minds of the faithful and incited them to confess too often. This ambiguity is explained by the representation of the saint, whose ephebe body was directly inspired by the antique figure of Apollo to celebrate masculine beauty.