Saint Barbara
Author: Unknown
Date: 15th century
Material: Polychromed limestone
Dimensions (cm): H 93 x W 28,5 x D 16
Provenance: Unknown
Inventory No.: MAS E 42
Image of Saint Barbara crowned with a garland, holding a palm on the right hand and an open book in the left hand, on which there are vestiges of what might have been a tower, symbol of the place where, according to the legend, she was imprisoned by her father.
The physical existence of Saint Barbara is very doubtful. According to the legend, she was born in Nicomedia (present Izmit, in Turkey), near the Sea of Marmara. Her father, Dioscorus, locked her up in a tower in order to protect her from the men’s eyes or, according to another version, from the influence of Christianity. Barbara becomes a Christian during one of her father’s trips. After finding out what happened, the latter has her beheaded, but, thanks to divine intervention, Dioscorus was struck by lightning and reduced to ashes. This is, thus, one of the reasons why Saint Barbara is invoked against lightning and thunder.