Getty Museum

Saint Hedwig Caring for the Sick; Saint Hedwig Caring for Prisoners

Date

1353

Medium

Tempera colors, colored washes, and ink

Culture

Silesian

Department

Manuscripts

Institution

Getty Museum

In the upper register, Saint Hedwig tends to the sick, spooning nourishing food into their gaping mouths. To the right, she distributes provisions to the poor. Below, she visits two prisoners locked in a stockade, who gratefully accept the candles she brings. To the right, she asks her husband to pardon their crimes and to release them. Although a member of the nobility, Hedwig performs these charitable tasks herself. Largely based on such characteristic acts of compassion and humility, the Catholic Church declared Hedwig a saint only twenty-three years after her death.

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