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On the commission of Ranieri, the son of Carlo Dei, the artist executed this painting for the church of Santo Spirito in Florence. Later it was transferred to Palazzo Pitti. Following the restlessness of his youthful period, this painting represents a moment of moderation, in which the references to the examples of Fra Bartolomeo and Andrea del Sarto appear more evident. The painting was much admired by Vasari, especially for the "vividness of the colours", which, with the greater regularity of the composition and the poses of the single figures, reveal a more original quality and come closer to the eccentric use of colour in the previous works, especially in the St Catherine kneeling in the foreground.
The unusually large assortment of saints comprises Sts Bernard, Augustine, Sebastian, Jacob, Joseph, Catherine, Peter, Anthony Abbot and two other unidentified male saints.
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