The painting "St. Sebastian Flanked by St. Lawrence and St. Roch" of 1500, by Giovanni Buonconsiglio in Venice (See: Figure 32), is particularly notable. St. Roch is placed to St. Sebastian's left and on the right hand side of the composition. He appears to be gazing directly out at the viewer as are the other two Saints. This essentially destroys the aesthetic distance as it implies that the three saints are aware of our presence. St. Roch presents an unusual physiognomy as he appears to be a young man with the beard of a more mature man. The fact of the eye contact cannot be missed as his muscular, left thigh is thrust forward and bare from groin to calf. The saint's right index finger points to a lesion/incision on the inner thigh, barely discernible in the shadow. However, between the separation of the pointing index finger and the middle finger insinuates a narrow, long fold of the white cloth, which is tucked into his waistband. The disposition of the fingers, hand and the patently penile, implied fold is a bit startling in it obviousness. A further interesting point, which bears on the whole, is the dark and abrupt shadow caused by a protruding form behind the white fabric which wraps 'round the hips of St. Sebastian. In both saints, there is a covert reference to the genitalia.

It is apparent, that the potential eroticism inherent in the depiction of St. Roch was of interest to a number of painters of the XVI^th and XVII^th Centuries. This coupled with the usual depiction of the semi-nude St. Sebastian, both patron saints of the plague, provided sufficient reasons for their pairing. One of the interesting features of the pairing is that in nearly every case St. Sebastian is shown as a beardless youth, certainly younger than the oft' bearded St. Roch. The related history of both the saints would seem to indicate that their death occurred when they were mature men, probably their early thirties. Yet, St. Roch is always shown as an older, more mature individual bordering on late maturity and St. Sebastian as obviously younger. This may well be as a result of the Italian Renaissance's predilection to show St. Sebastian as a Apollonian youth. By the XVI^th Century the mold had been established. By the XVII^th Century we began to see an older, 'beefier' St. Sebastian, obviously more mature.

This pairing of the two was inevitable. Among the numerous other paintings which include both St. Sebastian and St. Roch as secondary figures or attendant upon a primary figure are: Marco Palmezzano, Madonna and Child with St. Sebastian and St. Roch (c. 1497) (See: Figure 244) where St. Roch and St. Sebastian appear as chronological contemporaries; or Marco Palmezzano, Madonna of Loretto and Child with St. Sebastian and St. Roch (c. 1495) (See: Figure 245), however here the artist portrays St. Roch as bearded an older; Giambattista Cima da Conegliano, Sacra Conversazione (1500) (See: Figure 246) where St. Roch is shown as a rustic; Niccolo Pisano, St. Sebastian with Saints and Donors (1508) (See: Figure 243), depicts a much older St. Roch; Quentin Massys, Lucas Rem Triptych (a. 1518) (See: Figure 247) is interesting as St. Sebastian is bearded and appears older than his companion, St. Roch; Bernardino Luini, Virgin and Child with St. Sebastian and St. Roch (a. 1520) (See: Figure 210) reveals an older St. Roch; Lorenzo Lotto, Virgin and Child with St. Sebastian and St. Roch (a. 1521) (See: Figure 202) is similar to the Luini representation; Antonio Allegri aka Correggio produces a large composition filled with figures surrounding the Virgin and Child (1523) with St. Roch in the lower right hand corner with both thigh exposed (See: Figure 211); Luca Longhi, Virgin and Child with St. Sebastian and St. Roch (a. 1525) (See: Figure 212) paints a st. Roch with carefully clipped beard and closely cropped hair; Ercole Sarti, (aka il Muto di Ficarolo), Madonna of the Plaque with St. Roch and St. Sebastian (a. 1600) (See: Figure 47) and Carlo Bonone (aka Carlo Bononi), Virgin and Child with St. Sebastian and St. Roch (b. 1632) (See: Figure 46) and Guido Cagnacci, Virgin and Child with St. Sebastian, St. Roch and St. Jacint (a. 1650) (See: Figure 190) follow the tradition of an older, bearded St. Roch. There are scores of others which portray an older St. Roch.