A Fresco with a Curious History  

Posted by Kelly Madsen


A rather monotone Medieval Art and Architecture lecture by Art History department head Mark Johnson a couple of weeks ago became quite curious when the discourse turned to the crucifixion fresco from the church of S. Maria Antiqua. Apparently the long purple robe Christ is shown wearing caused many early Christians to confuse the suffering Savior for a martyred, bearded, female saint. This "saint" became widely known as the patron saint of all bearded women. So ladies, if you find your cheeks a little scruffy take hope 'cause there just might be a saint out there to help you with it :).

This entry was posted on Thursday, March 5, 2009 at 9:36 PM . You can follow any responses to this entry through the comments feed .

2 comments

Well thank goodness hirsute women have someone to look to for help or inspiration or maybe "she" just made them feel worse, "she" was considered a considered a martyr after all!

March 6, 2009 at 7:41 AM

Oh, and I love the blog. It is fabulous! Maybe this will actually inspire me to update mine.

March 6, 2009 at 7:43 AM

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