Fragment of an Antiphonary with Historiated Initial (S): The Stoning of St. Stephen
Medium
ink, tempera, and gold on parchment
Dimensions
33 × 33 cm
Classification
Manuscript
Department
Medieval Art
Museum
Cleveland Museum of Art
Credit
Purchase from the J. H. Wade Fund
Accession Number
1951.446
Rights
Public Domain
Tags
male
About this artwork
Saint Stephen is honored as the Christian church's first martyr. The illuminator of this initial has crowded the scene of the saint's death within the interior space of the letter S. Stephen emerges from the lower curve as his tormentors hurl stones from above. The center curve of the letter passes between figures to suggest a barrier. The activity of the initial's artist, Nicolò da Bologna, is well documented in Bologna's archives. By the late 1380s he enjoyed the appointment of illuminator to ...