This question may be rather out of season but I hope someone will be
able to help. Everyone probably knows the legend of St Nicholas
restoring three murdered and subsequently pickled schoolchildren to
life; in art the saint is usually depicted standing in front of a
large tub from which the children emerge.
However, in Hall's Dictionary of Subjects and Symbols in Art it is
suggested that this story is in fact based on an earlier story in
which the saint saved three soldiers who were to be unjustly
executed; the image of three diminutive soldiers on a tower
(representing their prison) would have been misinterpreted as three
little boys rising from a pickling tub.
As members of the list may know, my interest is in medieval
representations of children and I find such a possible
misinterpretation quite fascinating. If anyone can tell me more
about this earlier story or about where the confusion started, I
would be really grateful.
Sophie Oosterwijk
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Department of the History of Art
University of Leicester
e-mail: [log in to unmask]
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