Spanish or Italian school; 17th century.

Spanish or Italian school; XVII century.
"Saint Apollonia".
Oil on canvas.
No stretcher frame.
It has a frame from the early twentieth century.
Measurements. 42 x 30,5 cm; 69,5 x 58 cm (frame).
Saint Apollonia belongs to the group of virgin martyrs who suffered in Alexandria during a local uprising against the Christians in the middle of the 3rd century, before the persecution of Decius. She was martyred by the violent extraction of all her teeth, and is therefore the patron saint of dentistry. Christian historiography narrates that in the last years of the rule of Emperor Philip the Arab (between 244 and 249), during the festivities to commemorate the millennium of the foundation of Rome, the fury of the Alexandrian crowd turned to anger, committing bloody atrocities against the Christians that the authorities made no effort to stop. Dionysius, bishop of Alexandria, recounts the sufferings of his parishioners in a letter addressed to Fabius, the bishop of Antioch, and in it he recounts that Apollonia, a virgin presbyter, was a prominent figure in the Christian community, and that the revolted captured her, and with repeated blows broke all her teeth. They then kindled a bonfire outside the city gates, threatening to burn her alive if she refused to repeat, after them, impious words, blasphemies and invocations to pagan gods. At her own request she was released from her bonds, and then jumped straight into the fire, burning to death. In addition to the general insignia of the palm of martyrdom, the usual attribute of St. Apollonia is a pincer or tongs, which often causes her to be confused with St. Agatha, whose breasts were torn off by the executioners with tongs. However, the tooth caught in the pincer makes it easy to recognize her.