Saints Patrick and Brigid
Stained glass
Church of Our Lady and St. Kieran
Ballylooby, County Tipperary, Ireland
As usual in post-medieval images, St. Patrick is portrayed with a green chasuble and a mitre, crozier, and book.
The small lamp hanging from his right hand may be a general reference to his bringing the "light" of truth to Ireland, or it could refer to some such episode as the one in the Vita Patricii (Hogan, 561-62) about his first conversions. In that narrative the pagans are celebrating a feast on which no one is supposed to light a fire until one has been lit in the king's palace. But it is also Easter, and Patrick, camped nearby, lights a fire to begin the Easter service. When the king sees the light in the distance and consults his priests, they tell him that unless that fire is quenched that very night the new faith will prevail in his realm. The king then goes to Patrick's camp intending to kill him and extinguish the fire, but their encounter ends in his conversion.
St. Brigid's candle refers to the numerous passages in her legends that associate her with light and fire. She also holds a maquette of Kildare Abbey, which she founded in the 5th century.
Read more about images of St. Patrick and St. Brigid.
Source: Andreas Borchert via this page at Wikimedia Commons.
