Large oil on canvas depicting the Mystical Marriage of Saint Catherine attributed to Antonio Balestra (Verona, 1666-1740).
The Mystical Marriage of Saint Catherine of Alexandria is an episode taken from the Golden Legend by Jacques da Voragine. It is a classic subject in devotional painting for private use. According to Christian hagiography, Catherine was born around 290 into a noble family in Alexandria, Egypt. One night, she saw Christ in a dream and decided to devote her life to him, considering herself his fiancée.
Catherine of Alexandria, a very beautiful young woman, was the only daughter of King Costa. She refused to marry Emperor Maxentius, declaring herself devoted to Christ. Maxentius then sent her the wisest men, philosophers, and orators, who attempted to turn her away from faith in Christ. But Catherine, endowed with great intelligence and knowledge, succeeded in converting them, arousing the wrath of the emperor, who condemned them to the stake and Catherine to torture.
It was in the Middle Ages that a theology and piety emerged that developed the theme of the allegorical marriage with God. The consecration of virgins “married to Christ” became an institution that has continued in the Latin Church and the Orthodox Church.
A theme frequently depicted in 15th-century and later Italian Renaissance painting, this sacred union between the saint and the infant Jesus often takes the iconographic form of a wedding ring placed on the saint’s finger, sumptuously attired to indicate her princely status. The representation of the dream, however, is subject to evolution. Depending on the region of Italy and the school of thought, the world of reality and the world of the dream may appear side by side, connected by a mediator, or separated by a border or cloud.
Height: 135 cm
Width: 115 cm
