St. Dominic founded the Order of Preachers (the "Dominicans") initially to preach against Albigensianism in Southern France and Italy. From there the order spread widely, especially in Spain, where it emphasized preaching to Moslems in the newly conquered territories. From Spain it also spread to the Americas, again emphasizing preaching and conversion.
Because of the wide reach of the order, images of St. Dominic are very common in Latin countries. Usually you will be able to identify them easily by these attributes:
Dog with Torch
According to the Golden Legend St. Dominic's
mother while pregnant dreamed that she would give birth
to a dog who would hold a torch in its mouth and would
"burn the world." It has been suggested that the dog
represents a pun on Dominicanus,
the word for a Dominican friar, and domini canis, "dog
of the Lord." At any rate, a dog is often shown at the
saint's feet holding a torch in its mouth, as at left.
Star on Forehead
The Legend also relates that when St. Dominic
was a baby his
godmother saw a
star on his forehead during the baptism, so another
common attribute is a star either on the forehead or
above the head (example).
Rosary
In the above example St. Dominic also carries a
rosary,
which a legend starting in the 15th century claimed had
been given him by the Virgin Mary.
Lilies
Yet another attribute is a lily or stalk of
lilies, referring to St. Dominic's notable chastity (example).
Book and Staff
Finally, we often see St. Dominic with a book
and a staff (example),
a reference to a vision recounted in the Golden Legend in
which Peter and Paul give him these items and urge him
to take them into the world and preach. (In the
sculpture at left, the position of the outstretched
right hand seems to suggest that originally it held a
staff.)
A given image may use any combination of these six attributes, in addition to the saint's tonsure and black-and-white Dominican habit. Sometimes, when the context has established who the figure is, the habit and tonsure may be the only attributes.
St. Dominic was also renowned as a contemplative. One image emphasizing this aspect of his life is Fra Angelico's painting of St. Dominic embracing the cross in a manner suggestive of Mary Magdalene's.
The Golden Legend says that after receiving Dominic's request to establish the Order of Preachers the Pope had a dream in which the saint was protecting the church of St. John Lateran from falling down, and that the pope thereupon decided to honor Dominic's request. The dream is portrayed in a 15th-century manuscript illumination.
Feast day: August 4 or 8
At left, sculpture in Santiago de Compostela, Spain
Other images:
14th-century
altarpiece
Painting in
Trastevere, Rome
Crivelli painting,
15th century
Mateis painting,
18th centuryHagiography:
Menu