3-040-447 - Heritage Art/Heritage Images

Saint Hedwig of Silesia with Duke Ludwig I of Liegnitz and Brieg and Duchess Agnes, 1353. Additional Info:Within the sequence of narrative illuminations illustrating the life of Saint Hedwig, this image is unique. Rather than depicting an event in her life, the image portrays the saint as a focus for devotion. The artist presented her not only as an object of veneration for the manuscript's patrons, Duke Ludwig and his wife Agnes, shown kneeling on either side of her, but also for the readers of the manuscript. The image is rich in symbols that remind the viewer of various aspects of Hedwig's life. Her sumptuous garments indicate her aristocratic heritage, but over her right arm she carries her delicate slipperlike boots, a reference to the fact that she went barefoot in imitation of the apostles. In her right hand she grasps a statuette of the Virgin and Child, a sign of her devotion to the Virgin, while just beneath her hand, her rosary is prominently pinned to her robes. She also carries a prayer book, with her fingers marking her place to suggest that she will soon return to her prayers.