Decapitation of Saint John the Baptist. Etching by F. Forster after Cesare da Sesto.

  • Cesare, da Sesto, 1477-1523.
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6252i
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Decapitation of Saint John the Baptist. Etching by F. Forster after Cesare da Sesto. Wellcome Collection. Public Domain Mark. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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Description

Saint John the Baptist was the son of Saint Elizabeth, a relative (Greek "syngenis") of the Virgin. He was therefore a relative of Jesus Christ. His father was Zacharias. He is often depicted wearing camel's hair; with a lamb, referring to his description of Christ as the "Lamb of God"; with a cross of reeds held sometimes by him and sometimes by the lamb; and pointing with his index finger, to indicate his role as annunciator of Christ. His martyrdom by decapitation led to his being invoked especially against diseases associated with the head, such as migraine, epilepsy ("le mal Saint-Jean") and quinsy

Physical description

1 print

References note

Not found in: Jean Adhémar and Jacques Lethève, Inventaire du fonds français après 1800, Bibliothèque nationale, Département des estampes, tome VIII, Paris 1954, pp. 114-116 (inventory of prints by François Forster)

Reference

Wellcome Collection 6252i

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