The Baptism of the Lord

"The Baptism of Christ" c1450 by Piero della Francesca- National Gallery, London.

I seem to recall a senior bishop, a couple of years ago, suggesting that this fine work would be better placed in a church rather than in the National Gallery where it now rests. I was amused because, as an altarpiece painting, it was originally designed and destined for a church. The fact that it, like so many other treasures produced in past ages, is now cared for in a prestigious, if secular, art collection is due largely to the fact that past generations of clergy saw fit to re-order and "improve" the buildings entrusted to their care. Vandalism and bad taste did not begin with Vatican 2!