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Charles Alphonse Dufresnoy, St. Margaret of Antioch
French, 1656
Evreux, Musée d'Art Histoire et Archéologie
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This first St. Margaret was reputedly born in Syria, in the
area around Antioch. Antioch is a city
with a long, long Christian tradition.
Indeed, it is in Antioch that the followers of the new way in Judaism
were first called “Christians”. It is
the city that saw Saints Peter and Paul preach and is the city of one of the
best known of the very early Christian martyrs, St. Ignatius of Antioch. Ignatius was bishop of Antioch (the third ever, the first being St. Peter) in the latter decades of the first
century and his letters tell us much about the beliefs and disciplines of the
early Church. The letters we have were written while he was in transit, under guard, from Antioch to Rome, where he died, as he had expressly hoped, torn to pieces by the big cats of the new Flavian Amphitheatre (which we know as the Colosseum).1 With this background, it is not surprising
that a young woman named Margaret, who was a Christian, may have been born near the city,
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| Guercino, St. Margaret of Antioch Italian, c. 1630 Rome, Church of San Pietro in Vincoli |
Margaret is, in fact, a name with deep roots in the Middle
East, for it is derived from the Persian word for “pearl”. In many languages there is a close
association between the words for pearl and daisy.2 In French, for example, daisies are known as
“marguerites”. And women with the name
Margaret have sometimes been gifted with the nickname “Daisy” in addition to
the more common Margie, Maggie and Meg. So,
Margaret, probably in the sense of pearl, would not be an unusual name to find
in a Syrian woman.
Chances are that there may have been an early Christian
woman martyr in Syria or southern Anatolia named Margaret during one of the
persecutions that beset the Church in the Roman Empire. However, as with many of the early saints her
story became embellished over time with stories of horrendous cruelties and
fairytale elements. In Margaret’s case
these elements came to completely overshadow her human story.
According to the legend, Margaret was born on Antioch near
the end of the third century, the daughter of a priest of one of the pagan
cults, presumably for one of the gods or goddesses of the Roman pantheon. Since her mother died when she
was a baby, she was given to a wet nurse to raise. The woman happened to be both a wool worker and a Christian and
introduced Margaret to both.
On her coming of age, she was requested in marriage by a high ranking Roman official. She refused him and refused to renounce her faith as well. For this she was tortured (in some pretty horrific ways) and thrown into prison. In prison she was attacked by Satan in two forms. First, as a handsome young man who attempted to persuade her to surrender to the pleasures of the flesh. Having failed at that, he decided to try terror, assumed the form of a dragon and swallowed her whole.
On her coming of age, she was requested in marriage by a high ranking Roman official. She refused him and refused to renounce her faith as well. For this she was tortured (in some pretty horrific ways) and thrown into prison. In prison she was attacked by Satan in two forms. First, as a handsome young man who attempted to persuade her to surrender to the pleasures of the flesh. Having failed at that, he decided to try terror, assumed the form of a dragon and swallowed her whole.
Nothing daunted, Margaret either cut her way out of the dragon with a cross she had been holding when swallowed, or was miraculously released by the spontaneous explosion of the dragon when she made the sign of the cross from within his stomach. For this reason, she is most frequently shown holding a cross and with a dead or dying dragon at her feet.3
However, this reprieve was only temporary. She was eventually beheaded during the persecution of Diocletian (303-305).4
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| Richard de Montbaston, Martyrdom of Margaret of Antioch From a Golden Legend by Jacobus de Voragine French (Paris), 1348 Paris, Bibliotheque nationale de France MS Français 241, fol.159v |
Margaret was an extremely popular saint during the medieval period and remained so into the Renaissance and Baroque periods. She is the patron saint of a number of things and events, including pregnant women and childbirth. Further, she is also one of the three women martyrs among the so-called "Fourteen Holy Helpers", early saints who were believed to have great power as helpers to those who invoked their intercession.
In art we see different aspects of her life. Sometimes she is shown as a shepherdess or wool worker, a reference to the supposed occupation of her foster mother.
In art we see different aspects of her life. Sometimes she is shown as a shepherdess or wool worker, a reference to the supposed occupation of her foster mother.
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| Mahiet and Collaborators, St. Margaret of Antioch as a Shepherdess From a Speculum historiale by Vincentius Bellovacensis French (Paris), c. 1335 Paris, Bibliotheque nationale de France MS Arsenal 5080, fol. 288r |
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| Jean Fouquet, St. Margaret of Antioch Spinning Wool From the Hours of Etienne Chevalier French (Tours), c. 1450-1460 Paris, Musée du Louvre MS MI 1093
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| Francisco de Zurbaran, St. Margaret of Antioch as a Shepherdess Spanish, c. 1630-1634 London, National Gallery |
There are also a few images of her rejection of a suitor, which attracted the attention of the Roman authorities and led to her martyrdom.
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| * Anonymous, Margaret Rejects the Courtship of Olybrius German, Early 16th Century Ottobeuren, Abbey Art Collection |
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| * Melchior Puchner, St. Margaret of Antioch Rejects Olybrius's Courtship German, c. 1737 Bayrischzell, Church of St. Margaret |
At other times it is the scenes of her eventual torture and martyrdom
that we are shown.
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| Master of the Roman de Fauvel, Martyrdom of St. Margaret From a Vies de Saints French (Paris), c. 1300-1325 Paris, Bibliotheque nationale de France MS Français 183, fol. 86v This miniature shows both her escape from the dragon and her martyrdom. |
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| Lodovico Carracci, Martyrdom of St. Margaret Italian, 1616 Mantua, San Maurizio, Cappella di Santa Margherita |
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| * Melchior Puchner, St. Margaret of Antioch Is Tortured with Scourges and Torches German, c. 1737 Bayrischzell, Church of St. Margaret |
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| * Melchior Puchner, Martyrdom of St. Margaret of Antioch German, c. 1737 Bayrischzell, Church of St. Margaret |
At times she is seen in her place in heaven as a martyr saint. Here the dragon may appear as one of her attributes but always as a subdued, barely hinted at presence. What is more important is the cross or martyr's palm that she holds. She also is frequently shown holding a book.
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| St. Margaret of Antioch Spanish (Burgos), c.1275-1325 New York, Metropolitan Museum of Art |
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| St. Margaret of Antioch Catalan (Lleida), 1330-1340 New York, Metropolitan Museum of Art, The Cloisters Collection |
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St. Margaret of Antioch
From the Cologne Missal
German (Cologne), 1150
Paris, Bibliotheque nationale de France
MS Latin 12055, fol. 164v
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| Rogier van der Weyden, Saints Margaret and Apollonia Flemish, c. 1445-1450 Berlin, Gemäldegalerie der Staatliche Museen zu Berlin |
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Jacques de Besançon, The Court of Heaven
From a Golden Legend by Jacobus de Voragine
French (Paris), c. 1480-1490
Paris, Bibliotheque nationale de France
MS Français 244, fol.156
In this image Margaret takes her place among the front ranks of the
female martyrs. She stands in the first
row, wearing a dark blue dress and brownish cloak and carrying a cross over her
right shoulder.
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Annibale Carracci, St. Margaret of Antioch
Italian, c. 1597-1599
Rome, Church of Santa Caterina della Rosa
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| Peter Candid, St. Margaret of Antioch Flemish, c. 1600 Private Collection |
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| Jan Brueghel I, St. Margaret of Antioch Flemish, c. 1600-1625 Private Collection
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| Ernest Hebert, St. Margaret of Antioch French, c. 1877 Paris, Musée national Ernest Hebert |
But, primarily she is seen in relation to her victory over
the devil/dragon. These images come from all
the time periods.
Sometimes the dragon is a truly fierce monster, but quite frequently he
is seen almost as a pet. Sometimes, Margaret is seen to be popping out of the dragon. At other times she has already been completely liberated. At still others she is standing victoriously atop the beast.
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| St. Margaret Emerging from the dragon From the Livre d'images de Madame Marie Belgian (Hainaut), c. 1285-1290 Paris, Bibliotheque nationale de France MS Nouvelle acquisition française 16251, fol. 100r |
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| St. Margaret Emerging from the Dragon From the Sermons of Maurice de Sully Italian (Milan or Genoa), c. 1320-1330 Paris, Bibliotheque nationale de France MS Français 187, fol. 41r |
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| Workshop of Agnolo Gaddi, St. Margaret of Antioch Italian, c.1390 New York, Metropolitan Museum of Art
In this image Margaret is being ejected by the dragon by mouth rather than bursting through his belly.
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| Master of Marguerite d'Orléans, St. Margaret of Antioch From the Heures de Marguerite d'Orléans French (Rennes), c. 1430 Paris, Bibliotheque nationale de France MS Latin 1156 B, fol. 176r
I suggest that you click on this image to enlarge it so you won't miss the detail of Margaret as a shepherdess in the right side of the margin and the two rather charming little dragons in the bottom margin who are looking up approvingly at the devil's discomfiture. |
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| St. Margaret of Antioch French (Toulouse), c. 1475 New York, Metropolitan Museum of Art |
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| Jean Bourdichon, St. Margaret of Antioch From the Grandes heures d'Anne de Bretagne French (Tours), c. 1503-1508 Paris, Bibliotheque nationale de France MS Latin 9474, 205v |
The dragons in these two images above seem almost domesticated, almost pet-like. Obviously, this was one little bit of fantasy that painters and sculptors (and even potters) could relate to, a kind of comic relief in their usual work of preparing images of the martyr saints that were often far from comic.
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| Workshop of Maestro Giorgio Andreoli, St. Margaret of Antioch Majolica dish Italian, 1527 New York, Metropolitan Museum of Art, Lehman Collection |
However, Raphael (known through several copies by his students, such as Giulio Romano) and Titian suggest that there may have been a struggle to escape from the dragon.
At the end of the seventeenth century, an artist working in the circle of Giacomo Ceruti imagined the vanquished demon as partially returned to human form, a much more unsettling image for we see Satan resuming his appearance as a fallen angel.
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| Giulio Romano (after Raphael), St. Margaret of Antioch Italian, c. 1518 Paris, Musée du Louvre |
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| Titian, St. Margaret of Antioch Italian, 1565 Madrid, Museo del Prado |
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| Studio of Giacomo Ceruti, St. Margaret of Antioch Itaian, c. 1601-1623 Private Collection |
Even given the comic relief aspect, there is a deeper reference here, one with a Biblical foundation. For, it refers to what had been foretold in the book of Genesis, when God rebuked the "snake" who tempted Eve to sin "Then the LORD God said to the snake: Because you have done this, cursed are you among all the animals, tame or wild; On your belly you shall crawl, and dust you shall eat all the days of your life. I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; They will strike at your head, while you strike at their heel." (Genesis 3:14-15)
The dragon that devoured Margaret is the same snake that tempted Eve, both are personifications of Satan, the Devil, the Enemy who is both an enemy to God and to humanity. Margaret is here seen as a reflection of the Virgin Mary, the quintessential "woman" of Genesis and of Revelation and the Second Eve, who, with the offspring of both her body (Jesus) and her faith (Margaret, the saints, and by extension, all Christians) will strike at his head. 5
Occasionally, images of Saint Margaret may have no references to any aspect of the story of her life, her martyrdom or her miraculous escape from the dragon, but may purely present her as an intercessor before God for a human person. Such an image is the unusual one below. In the lowest level of the picture we see a woman lying down, attended by others, some of whom are praying, hinting at a scene of childbirth. In the middle section we see a king and queen giving thanks for the baby which the queen holds. In the upper level we see St. Margaret kneeling in supplication before Christ, surrounded by angels both adults and cherubs. One of the cherubs holds her martyr's palm, while a small group holds the cross of Christ. Margaret's dragon is shown as flying off to the right at the border between the upper and middle sections, while an adult angel holds a cornucopia of flowers which he is about the send to earth. The subject appears to be the birth of an heir to the aged Louis XIV. This probably refers to the birth of the future Louis XV, who inherited his great-grandfather's throne at the age of five.
The dragon that devoured Margaret is the same snake that tempted Eve, both are personifications of Satan, the Devil, the Enemy who is both an enemy to God and to humanity. Margaret is here seen as a reflection of the Virgin Mary, the quintessential "woman" of Genesis and of Revelation and the Second Eve, who, with the offspring of both her body (Jesus) and her faith (Margaret, the saints, and by extension, all Christians) will strike at his head. 5
Occasionally, images of Saint Margaret may have no references to any aspect of the story of her life, her martyrdom or her miraculous escape from the dragon, but may purely present her as an intercessor before God for a human person. Such an image is the unusual one below. In the lowest level of the picture we see a woman lying down, attended by others, some of whom are praying, hinting at a scene of childbirth. In the middle section we see a king and queen giving thanks for the baby which the queen holds. In the upper level we see St. Margaret kneeling in supplication before Christ, surrounded by angels both adults and cherubs. One of the cherubs holds her martyr's palm, while a small group holds the cross of Christ. Margaret's dragon is shown as flying off to the right at the border between the upper and middle sections, while an adult angel holds a cornucopia of flowers which he is about the send to earth. The subject appears to be the birth of an heir to the aged Louis XIV. This probably refers to the birth of the future Louis XV, who inherited his great-grandfather's throne at the age of five.
-German,%201757_Baumberg,%20Church%20of%20Saint%20Margaret.jpg) |
| * Joseph Hartmann, Miracle of Saint Margaret of Antioch German, 1757 Baumberg, Church of Saint Margaret |
© M. Duffy, 2016. Additional text and images added 2025.
* Indicates new images.
_________________________________________________________
- For St. Ignatius of Antioch see http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/07644a.htm, which includes links to his letters. "St. Ignatius of Antioch." The Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 7. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1910. 20 Jul. 2016
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Margaret
- The story of the dragon was too much of a strain on the credulity of Jacobus de Voragine, who was quite happy with a great many other fantastic stories. In his The Golden Legend, written in he says “This swallowing and breaking of the belly of the dragon is said that it is apocryphal.” From The GOLDEN LEGEND or LIVES of the SAINTS, Compiled by Jacobus de Voragine, Archbishop of Genoa, 1275 First Edition Published 1470, ENGLISHED by WILLIAM CAXTON, First Edition 1483, VOLUME FOUR. From the Temple Classics Edited by F.S. ELLIS First issue of this Edition, 1900 Reprinted 1922, 1931< http://legacy.fordham.edu/halsall/basis/goldenlegend/GoldenLegend-Volume4.asp>
- MacRory, Joseph. "St. Margaret." The
Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 9. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1910. 20 Jul.
2016
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