A Holy Bishop among Holy Kings in the Frescoes of Mălâncrav (I)
A Holy Bishop among Holy Kings in the Frescoes of Mălâncrav (I)
Author(s): Dragoș NăstăsoiuSubject(s): History, Fine Arts / Performing Arts
Published by: Academia Română – Centrul de Studii Transilvane
Keywords: Mălâncrav; medieval iconography; wall painting, cults of saints; St. Adalbert; sancti reges Hungariae; Hungarian patron saints
Summary/Abstract: In the murals painted before 1404/5 in the sanctuary of the church in Mălâncrav, there is a group scene composed of five saints: the three holy kings of Hungary (i.e. Stephen, Emeric, and Ladislas), St. Sigismund of Burgundy, and a holy bishop without defining attributes. Rejecting previous identifications (St. Gerard of Cenad or St. Nicholas) for the holy bishop in Mălâncrav, the article establishes a new identity by focusing on hagiographic, liturgical, and historical texts, and analyzing a series of images of saints. After placing the representation in Mălâncrav against the background of the cults of saints popular in medieval Hungary, the author identifies the holy bishop in Mălâncrav as St. Adalbert, the patron saint of the Archbishopric of Esztergom and one of Hungary’s holy protectors.
Journal: Transylvanian Review
- Issue Year: XXVI/2017
- Issue No: 01
- Page Range: 90-104
- Page Count: 15
- Language: English