St. Christina

Abstract

This painted wood sculpture of St. Christina is kept inside a tabernacle created in 1620 and then substantially rebuilt in 1878. The statue, made of painted wood by likely a Sienese sculptor in the early fifteenth century, is and was the focus of a great deal of devotion and was regularly taken out on procession until 1990. The processions also involved dramatic reenactments of the many ways in which St. Christina's tormentors attempted to kill her: with arrows, with boiling oil, with serpents (reenacted with live snakes gathered from the countryside), etc.). The form of the sculpture, with the elegant sway of the figure to the back and side, the high-waisted gown, and the sweep of drapery, is reminiscent of the works Francesco di Valdambrino. A metal crown, martyr's palm, and arrow have been added to the sculpture, and knobs on the sides of the face were probably added to facilitate dressing the statue with earrings. Indeed photos show the statue wearing earrings and draped with necklaces and other offerings. Photograph(s) licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.