Our website uses cookies to ensure the quality of services provided to you. If you keep browsing, you consent to TARTLE cookie and privacy policy. More information

St John Nepomucene

Author: Unknown artist
Created:second half of the 18th c.– early 19th c
Material:canvas
Technique:oil
Dimensions:54 × 42.70 cm

The story of St John Nepomucene, who displeased King Wenceslaus IV of Bohemia, spread in the 15th century. He was murdered because of his refusal to divulge the secrets of the Queen’s confession, whom the king suspected of infidelity. Since then, St John Nepomucene has been revered as a protector of the seal of the confessional, and his cult is related to the Sacrament of Confession and the importance of the priesthood. In the religious atmosphere of the 18th and 19th centuries, St John Nepomucene was seen as the ideal priest, and a good example to clerics. Pictures of him with his finger to his lips are rare in Lithuania, but they are common in European art. Such images represent the seal of the confessional. The painter of this picture wanted to emphasise this aspect of the veneration of the saint, but must have misunderstood the meaning of the ring of stars over his head that appears in traditional portrayals. The number of stars should be five, as that was how many hovered over the river where the body of the drowned saint lay.

Text author Dalia Vasiliūnienė

Source: Law firm Valiunas Ellex art album HEAVEN AND BEYOND (2016). Compiler Dalia Vasiliūnienė. Text authors Dalia Vasiliūnienė, Skaidrė Urbonienė
Expositions: “Heaven and Beyond. Works of religious art from the collection of Rolandas Valiūnas and the law firm Valiunas Ellex“, 31 May–24 September 2016, Church Heritage Museum, Vilnius (curators Dalia Vasiliūnienė, Skaidrė Urbonienė)