This altarpiece was commissioned for a private chapel in Florence's then-new Franciscan church, Santa Croce. Introduced only a century earlier by the charismatic friar Francis of Assisi, the Franciscan Order encouraged compassion for others inspired by Christ's human suffering.

Although Franciscan friars took vows of personal poverty, their imposing church reflected the extensive wealth of families like the Peruzzi, whose patronage supported this highly visual expression of faith.