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St Clares : How to read the church
Return to How to read the church Altarpiece or Triptych (Series of paintings on east wall behind altar) This forms a backdrop to the chancel area and is an important focus for the congregation.
Appropriately for its position directly over the altar and tabernacle, the main theme of the altarpiece is the Holy Eucharist. The eucharistic theme is taken up by the central panel, a representation of the Holy Trinity in which the crucified Christ is most prominent. .
In the small panel above, two kneeling angels adore the chalice and Host
In the panel below another pair of angels incense the sacred monogram 'ihc' (an abbreviation of the name 'Jesus' in Greek) and the nails and crown of thorns associated with the crucifixion. The theme also extends to the panels on either side of the central one.
On the right, the Virgin Mary holds the infant Christ who raises his hand to bless,
On the left St. Clare holds up a monstrance in a gesture of benediction: the infant Christ and the monstrance containing the Host are evidently meant to echo one another, affirming the doctrine that the consecrated Host is the body of Christ.
The saints represented in the side panels are identified by Latin inscriptions below each figure. Clara is the Latinate for Clare.
Also by traditional symbols. St. William, Bishop of York, wears a bishop's mitre and carries a crozier; St.James carries a staff bearing a cockle shell, the badge worn by medieval pilgrims to his shrine at Compostella in northern Spain;
St.Francis wears the Franciscan habit and there is a bird at his feet, recalling his sermon to the birds; and above the shoulder of St Augustine, Bishop of Hippo, is a heart pierced by arrows of God's love.
Various angels with musical instruments are depicted on side panels. Some of the most enduring images of angels show them playing musical instruments or singing. this theme is especially strong in the art of the Renaissance, reflecting the belief then current that music and harmony restore the human soul. since the primary function of angels is to praise God, it was only natural that church walls should be peopled with angelic musicians, playing not only harps but also kettledrums and bagpipes, lutes and viols, portable organs and other instruments of the time.
At least three of these saints depicted on the triptych were also the name saints of the joint founders of St Clare's, the brothers William James and Francis Ecksley Reynolds . Commemorating the donors of a work of religious art in this way was quite usual in the medieval and Renaissance periods.
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