St. Catherine Fresco - Siena, Italy - Philatelic Photographs on Waymarking.com

Caterina di Jacopo di Benincasa was born in 1347 in Siena, the 24th of 25 children (though most of those children did not survive childhood, including Catherine’s twin sister). Devoutly religious from an early age, she devoted much time to prayer and fasting, vehemently avoiding marriage. Following the Dominican model, she chose a path of interacting in the secular world rather than the convent life.

Contrary to the picture often painted of non-twentieth-century women, Catherine became quite active in the civil and ecclesiastical affairs of her day. She was instrumental in encouraging the pope to return to Rome from Avignon in 1377. She was sent as an ambassador of Rome to Florence on a peace keeping mission in 1378 by Pope Gregory XI. Her advice was also sought by Pope Urban VI during the Western Schism of the late fourteenth century. And she was a prolific writer: 382 of her letters survive as well as her major treatise ‘The Dialogue of Divine Providence.’ Catherine died in Rome in 1380: She was only 33 years old.

The fresco adorns the Chapel of St. Catherine in the Basilica of San Domenico in Siena. It is part of a series of frescoes telling of events in the life of St. Catherine. This particular fresco was painted by Italian Renaissance artist Il Sodoma in 1526. In the scene, the perhaps unjustly accused political prisoner Niccolo di Toldo has just been beheaded. Catherine had been attending to Niccolo in the days leading up to his execution, helping to strengthen his faith. The gruesome painting shows the decapitated body lying in the forefront while his head is being held high. Catherine is seen looking up toward heaven as his spirit ascends.

Also seen in the fresco (and on the stamp) is St. Catherine’s stigmata (nail wound in her hand). She is said to have received this in Pisa and not at Niccolo’s execution. Adding to the macabre nature of the fresco is the fact that St. Catherine’s own head, severed from her dead body in Rome, was brought back to Siena and is permanently enshrined as a relic in this same chapel.

Catherine of Siena was canonized by Pope Pius II in 1461. The stamp was one of a set of three, all with the same design, issued to commemorate the 500th anniversary of this canonization.

Stamp Issuing Country: Vatican City Date of Issue: 12-Jun-1962 Denomination: 60 l Color: bluish violet Stamp Type: Single Stamp Relevant Web Site: Not listed

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Date Logged Log User Rating   03/18/2024 GURUGU visited it