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Secondary sourcePainting1501

S. Benedictus Devotional Print

1501

A 1501 devotional engraving of Benedict with a caption summarising his traditional biography, held at the Sainte-Geneviève Library.

A devotional print summarising Benedict's traditional biography, including his birth and death dates.

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Engraved print of a bearded monk in a black habit with a white collar, holding a book with a chalice on top and a crozier, finger to lips, in an ornate oval frame with the inscription S. Benedictus and Latin text below.
S. Benedictus devotional print, 1501. Sainte-Geneviève Library.

About this source

What it is

This engraved print from 1501 shows Benedict as a bearded monk holding a book topped with a chalice and a crozier, framed in an ornate oval with a Latin inscription. It is held at the Sainte-Geneviève Library.

Why it matters

The caption below the image summarises the traditional story of Benedict's life, including his noble birth at Nursia and his death, showing how his biography was repeated and standardised in printed devotional material by the early 1500s. Prints like this spread a fixed image of Benedict to readers across Europe.

Look closer

  • What symbols (the book, chalice, crozier) are included, and what might each represent about Benedict's life?
  • Why is the Latin caption as important as the picture itself for understanding this print?
  • What does the repeated use of such prints tell you about how saints' stories were passed down?

This painting is part of the curated material that grounds the AI version of Saint Benedict on Humy.ai — when students ask about related events, the AI can quote it and cite it.

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