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Secondary sourcePainting1476

Saint Thomas Aquinas

Carlo Crivelli · 1476

A panel painting by Carlo Crivelli showing Thomas Aquinas with the book, church model and sunburst that became the standard way of picturing him.

This panel is one of the most reproduced images of Aquinas, using symbols to represent his teaching and faith.

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Painting of a bearded man in a black hooded robe with a gold halo, holding an open book with handwritten text in his left hand and a small stone building model in his right. A golden sunburst sits on his chest, with a brick tower and gold patterned background behind him.
Carlo Crivelli, Saint Thomas Aquinas, 1476. National Gallery, London.

About this source

What it is

This panel was painted by Carlo Crivelli in 1476 and is now in the National Gallery. It shows a bearded, haloed man in a black hooded robe, holding an open book and a small model of a church, with a golden sunburst on his chest.

Why it matters

According to the museum, this is the most widely reproduced likeness of Thomas Aquinas, using symbols that became standard: the book for his writing, the church model for his role as a pillar of the Church, and the sun for the brightness of his teaching. It shows how later generations wanted him remembered, centuries after his life in the 13th century.

Look closer

  • What do the objects he holds tell you about how people wanted him remembered?
  • Why might an artist painted two centuries later choose symbols instead of a realistic portrait?
  • What does the painting leave out about his actual life and ideas?

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

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Title page of a 1596 Venice edition printed by Iuntas, with Latin text announcing two indexes to the Summa Theologica of Thomas Aquinas, and a central ornate oval emblem with a fleur-de-lis and the letters L and A.Book

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17th century

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Pange Lingua Gloriosi Corporis Mysterium

Thomas Aquinas · 1263

Engraving of a haloed saint kneeling at left, hand raised in refusal, facing a seated pope wearing a tiara and holding a crosier, with mitred bishops and a canopy behind. Latin caption text below.Painting

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Thomas Aquinas Refuses the Archbishopric of Naples

1610

Painted altarpiece panel with a gold background. Christ is enthroned at the top within a pointed arch. Below, four evangelist-like figures hold open books. A central monk in black habit holds an open book inscribed with text, surrounded by a dark circle with golden rays. Figures in red and black robes flank him, and a crowd of people with halos and a kneeling figure appear at the bottom.Painting

Secondary source

Triumph of Saint Thomas Aquinas

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