Thomas Aquinas main altar figure, Friesach Dominican church

What it is

This is a photograph of the main altar of the Dominican Order church in Friesach, Austria. The altar shows Thomas Aquinas as a kneeling friar with a halo and a sun emblem on his chest. He faces a seated, bearded pope in red robes and a tall mitre, who holds a scroll. A cross stands behind them, and a haloed nun kneels at the left. The panel is a painted wooden relief in a Gothic-style niche with gilded tracery, and a banner bears Latin text. The photograph was uploaded in 2011.

Why it matters

Aquinas was a Dominican friar, and the Dominican Order placed him at the centre of its own church. The altar was made long after his death in 1274, so it shows how later believers remembered him, not how he looked. The scene of a friar before a pope reflects how Aquinas was honoured by the church as a teacher and saint. The artist and the exact date of the carving are not known from the facts.

Look closer

• Who are the figures in the scene, and how can you tell their rank from their clothing?
• Why might the makers have chosen to show Aquinas kneeling before the pope?
• What does this later image leave out about Aquinas's own life and writing?