Cnytr: St. Dominic image?

{Tuesday, June 21, 2005 }

.:{St. Dominic image?}:.

If the information I have is accurate there seems to be a rather unusual image of St. Dominic enthroned in glory. The website whence it came is usually trustworthy, and it attributes it directly to Bartolome Bermejo and says it's hanging in the Prado in Madrid. (It's hard to credibly invent or mistakenly give that sort of information)

My giving it the benefit of the doubt:

I notice the allegorical figures of the cardinal virtues in the niches of the painted alter tryptich (Dominicans begin at the virtues and not at the 10 commandments as Fr. Cameron OP pointed out at the Dominican congress). I believe it is the Church (or Faith) likewise in allegorical figure who holds the cross and the chalice (though I'm not 100% certain), and I do not recognize the figure on her right. Wisdom (/Mary/Charity) is standing above him. Of course he has the obligatory book.

Were it not for the fact that WGA can nail down an artist and the museum in which it presently hangs, upon looking at the painting I would wonder who the bishop-saint is (why a mitre and crozier? St. Dominic was never a bishop). His face doesn't look to me like St. Dominic, and while the black and white habit is present, the cope (and dalmatic-looking chasuble???) mostly covers it.

~~This is definitely a Dominican~~, but I am still left with some doubt as to whether or not it is indeed our Holy Father Dominic. I would be interested to hear others' opinions on this matter.

Update: Thanks to all who commented -- mystery solved, it is not SPN Dominicus but an earlier Dominic (an OSB). But still a cool image nonetheless.

posted by Lauren, 7:18 PM

9 Comments:

I would be inclined to think that is not Saint Dominic. He does not seem to follow how Saint Dominic is usually illustrated, and the items he is holding/wearing would indeed be representative of a Bishop/Pope.

Do you know what time the painting was made? If it was late enough maybe it was one of the Dominican Popes.

commented by

Philip, 7:48 PM

Philip,

The same page dates the painting from 1474-1477, as does this site which gives the same title and location.

The 15th century makes it too early to be an image of Pius V, but it's just about right for Pope Bld. Innocent V (OP), whose feast day, incidentally, is this Thursday.

commented by

Lauren, 8:04 PM

This painting is awesome. I want one of those for my church!

commented by

Bryan Jerabek, 10:23 PM

It occured to me that this mightn't be a Dominican saint at all - and I had a vague recollection of there being a popular Abbot venerated in Spain called Dominic.
A little googling turned up St Dominic of Silos, Abbot. Your St Dominic was named for him.

commented by

Zadok the Roman, 4:15 AM

I believe it is the Church likewise in allegorical figure who holds the cross and the chalice (though I'm not 100% certain), and I do not recognize the figure on her right

Maybe I'm looking at the wrong figures, but given that the Cardinal Virtues are depicted lower down, it would seem logical that the Theological Virtues are also shown - the one with the Cross and Chalice being Faith, her counterpart to the Right being Hope and the figure at the top sheltering people in her cloak being Charity.

commented by

Zadok the Roman, 4:19 AM

Zadok --

Oh! Gotcha! That makes a lot of sense now. But we're still going to claim that St. Dominic as a Dominican because of the reasons I listed. ;D

Thanks to someone only slightly smarter than I for solving the mystery.

commented by

Lauren, 7:49 AM

I don't want to spoil the moment, but St. Dominicus (Domingo) de Silos was OSB - which in German, incidentally, is often said to mean "O, die Schlimmen Buben" (o, the bad, bad boys).

Hermann

commented by

Hermann Hayn, 9:25 AM

Ah yes, so this Dominic is the patron saint of monks who package and market chant recordings...

commented by

Bryan Jerabek, 10:32 AM

Herman --

Ha!! That's hilarious. I have to remember that one. Thanks!

commented by

Lauren, 7:01 PM