Spanish school, XVIII century.

Spanish school, XVIII century.
"Saint Barbara".
Oil on canvas.
Relined.
It is very repainted.
Measurements: 99,4 x 58,3 cm.

We recognize the saint represented in this late-baroque painting by the attributes of martyrdom that she holds with her left hand, especially the sword, the utensil with which she was sacrificed. Compiled late in the 10th century and popularized in the West in the 13th century by the Golden Legend, the legend of Saint Barbara tells that she was the daughter of the satrap Dióscuro who, to keep her from Christian proselytism, locked her in an open tower with only two windows, piercing a third one herself in allusion to the Holy Trinity. However, Barbara received the teachings of a priest who pretended to be a doctor, and to express her faith in the Trinity she pierced a third window in the wall. She managed to flee but was captured by her father, and when she refused to abjure Christianity and marry a pagan she was handed over to the judge Marcian, who tortured her in various ways. She was stretched on a rack and flogged, torn with iron combs, rolled on fragments of pottery and burned with red-hot irons, and finally the executioners tore out her breasts with pincers. Finally, her father beheaded her.