Saint Raymond Nonnatus (San Ramon Nonato)

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FROM THE BARNES FOUNDATION’S CATALOG

Active in the Catalonia region of Spain, Saint Raymond Nonnatus (d. 1240) was famous for ransoming Christian slaves from North Africa. He even gave himself up for hostage when he ran out of money, at which point his captors padlocked his lips to stop him from preaching. In this fragment of an altarpiece from Spanish New Mexico, Raymond is dressed as a cardinal and holds a monstrance (a vessel to display the consecrated host or relics) and a martyr's palm branch. The artist most likely adapted this composition from exemplars produced by the Jesuits in Mexico.

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