Capital with Angels Holding the Veil of Saint Veronica, with a Column

Unknown

ca. 1325–75 · Limestone with traces of polychromy · Medieval Art

The face portrayed on Veronica’s veil was the Vera Icon (true portrait of Christ). According to legend, when Veronica wiped Jesus’ face as he was led to Calvary, his image was miraculously imprinted on the cloth, which was eventually taken to Saint Peter’s in Rome. Such images were intended to inspire meditation through visual identification with Christ’s likeness.

Artist

Unknown

Date

ca. 1325–75

Medium

Limestone with traces of polychromy

Culture

North Italian

Department

Medieval Art

Credit line

Purchase, Gifts of Irwin Untermyer, J. Pierpont Morgan and Marcus T. Reynolds, by exchange; Bequests of George D. Pratt, Susan Dwight Bliss and Henry Victor Burgy, by exchange; and Rogers and Frederick C. Hewitt Funds, 1981