St Roch

An unknown artist portrayed St Roch as a pilgrim, dressed in white habit, black cloak and hat. There was once a pilgrim’s staff in his left hand, and his right hand is pointing to his exposed sore leg. The cloak is marked with a cross, a symbol of devotion, and a skull and crossbones. In folk sculpture, a cross on the chest or cloak often took the place of a shell, the usual pilgrim’s emblem, which was unfamiliar to peasants and was therefore often omitted; even when it was present, it did not look like a shell, but more like a simple decoration. The skull, although it is not portrayed as often as a cross, is always very distinct, slightly oversize, and accompanied by two crossbones. This symbol of death on St Roch’s cloak, referring to the care of the sick and the dying, was associated with his role as a protector from three woes, famine, plague and war.

Text author Skaidrė Urbonienė

An unknown artist portrayed St Roch as a pilgrim, dressed in white habit, black cloak and hat. There was once a pilgrim’s staff in his left hand, and his right hand is pointing to his exposed sore leg. The cloak is marked with a cross, a symbol of devotion, and a skull and crossbones. In folk sculpture, a cross on the chest or cloak often took the place of a shell, the usual pilgrim’s emblem, which was unfamiliar to peasants and was therefore often omitted; even when it was present, it did not look like a shell, but more like a simple decoration. The skull, although it is not portrayed as often as a cross, is always very distinct, slightly oversize, and accompanied by two crossbones. This symbol of death on St Roch’s cloak, referring to the care of the sick and the dying, was associated with his role as a protector from three woes, famine, plague and war.

Text author Skaidrė Urbonienė