medieval-religion: Scholarly discussions of medieval religion and culture
Jim,
You wrote:
> St. Isidore the Farmer (aka of Madrid), St Guthlac and St Fiacre, gardeners all,
> but I have not been able to relate the main scene to any of them. ...
Fiacre's main miracle story has to do with a petition to Bishop Pharon
of Meaux, a former knight. The details of the story, of course, vary,
but the main idea is that Pharon offered as much wood or land as Fiacre
could clear in one day by himself. Fiacre traced a boundary with his
cane (some say a shovel), which is why I thought the cane in the left
panel was significant. The trees were miraculously felled (or perhaps
blown down). I suppose the birds around the two characters are either
looking for their lost homes in the missing branches, or they gathered
for the seeds in the garden he planted.
Fiacre is also noted for founding a church dedicated to Mary, which may
relate to the infant pointing upward.
Chuck
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