Spanish school; second third of the XVI century.

Spanish school; second third of the XVI century.
"Saint Catherine of Alexandria".
Oil on panel.
It presents faults in the pictorial surface.
Measurements: 85 x 66 cm; 89 x 70 cm (frame).
As for the iconography, we are in front of an image of Saint Catherine of Alexandria, whose life is totally legendary and is narrated for the first time in the Menologio of Basil, although it will be popularized in the West by Santiago de la Voragine in the book the Golden Legend, written in the XIII century, it gathers the life and sacrifices of the first martyrs of the Christianity. The martyrs of Christianity are represented with a series of elements that Panofsky called attributes. These attributes refer to moments in the life of the martyrs, in most cases to the torment they suffered. The case of Saint Catherine of Alexandria is not different from that of the other martyrs, hence her attributes are the following: the wheel, attribute of the torture, is sometimes represented complete and sometimes a piece of it. We thus find a praying martyr, with an elevated gaze. The clothing shows her high lineage and, as we have already said, we can recognize elements of martyrdom.
A Christian martyr of the 4th century, Catherine came from a noble family of Alexandria. Endowed with a great intelligence, she soon stood out for her extensive studies that placed her on the same level as the greatest poets and philosophers of the time. One night Christ appeared to her and she decided, at that moment, to consecrate her life to him, considering herself, since then, his fiancée. She refused to marry the emperor Maximian, and victoriously held a dispute with fifty philosophers sent by him to demonstrate the inanity of the Christian faith. Furious, Maximian condemned her to be torn by a wheel with spikes. The wheel miraculously breaks, and Catherine is finally beheaded. Her iconography is extensive, including the wheel and the sword of her martyrdom, the book that symbolizes her wisdom, the palm that alludes to the victory of martyrdom and the lily, sign of her virginity. However, one of the most frequent iconographic elements in her representation is the severed head of Caesar Maximinus, which allegorically represents the saint's triumph over the pagan tyrant.