Feminae: Medieval Women and Gender Index

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Click to view high resolution image Title: St. Catherine of Siena before Pope Gregory XI at Avignon Creator: Giovanni di Paolo, painter Description: St. Catherine was born in Siena around 1347 and was a Dominican Tertiary. She led an ascetic life and dedicated herself to caring for the sick but also exerted great influence over church politics: in the scene depicted here, she convinces Pope Gregory XI to return the papal curia to Rome, much to the dismay of the surrounding French cardinals. A fellow Tertiary stands behind her. According to the vita written by her confessor, Raymond of Capua, Catherine and Gregory could not understand each other (Catherine did not know Latin and Gregory did not know Italian), and so Raymond served as her interpreter. Yet here Catherine and Gregory appear to communicate directly. Source: Wikimedia Commons Rights: Public domain Subject (See Also): Avignon Papacy Catherine of Siena, Saint Dominican Order- Tertiaries Gregory IX, Pope Hagiography Geographic Area: Italy Century: 15 Date: 1460-1463 Related Work: Other panels that have been identified in this altarpiece include: "The eleven panels that comprised the predella have been identified in various museums and private collections. They are: Saint Catherine taking the Habit of the Dominican Order and Saint Catherine and the Beggar in the Cleveland Museum of Art; The Mystic Marriage of Saint Catherine, Saint Catherine exchanging her Heart with that of Christ, and The Death of Saint Catherine, in various private collections; Saint Catherine receiving the Stigmata, Saint Catherine pleading to Christ to revive her Mother, and The Miraculous Communion of Saint Catherine in The Metropolitan Museum of ArtNew, York; Saint Catherine dictating her Dialogues in the Detroit Institute of Art; and The Crucifixion, which is the central scene in the predella, in the Rijksmuseum in Utrecht." (quoted from the Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza website). Current Location: Madrid, Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza, INV. Nr. 162 (1966.6) Original Location: Artistic Type (Category): Digital images; Paintings Artistic Type (Material/Technique): Altarpiece panel; Wood; Tempera; Gold Donor: Laymen; Guild of the Pizzicaioli Height/Width/Length(cm): 29 cm/29 cm/ Inscription: Related Resources:

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