An angel with downcast eyes, wearing both right-handed and left-handed swastikas. Renaissance fresco in the Cathédrale St-Lazare d’Autun (Cathedral of Saint Lazarus of Autun), founded circa 1120 AD at Autun, Saône-et-Loire, Bourgogne-Franche-Comté, France.
Autun, Saône-et-Loire, Bourgogne-Franche-Comté, France: an angel wearing both right-handed and left-handed swastikas in Renaissance fresco in the Roman Catholic Cathédrale d’Autun (Cathedral of Saint Lazarus of Autun), which was founded in Romanesque architectural style in about 1120 AD. The swastika, a cross with arms bent at right-angles, was a symbol of good fortune throughout the ancient world. The word is derived from the Sanskrit ‘svastika’ meaning ‘well-being’. It was a favourite symbol on ancient Mesopotamian coinage. It also appeared in early Christian and Byzantine art. The right-handed swastika, with arms bent in a clockwise direction, often symbolised day. The left-handed swastika often stood for night. In Nazi Germany, the swastika became infamous as the national symbol. Autun cathedral was built to accommodate large numbers of believers travelling to Vezelay on the pilgrimage route to Santiago de Compostela in Spain, and to Autun itself to venerate the supposed relics of Lazarus of Bethany, the follower of Jesus whom Christ is said to have restored to life four days after his death. In fact, the relics Autun had obtained from Marseilles, about 150 years earlier, were those of Lazarus of Aix, the 5th century Bishop of Aix-en-Provence. Autun Cathedral is today regarded as among of the finest examples of Romanesque art and architecture, not just in Burgundy, but in the whole of France. It is particularly known for its sculpted doorways, tympanums and capitals, believed to be the work of the French Romanesque sculptor Gislebertus, Giselbertus of Ghiselbertus, who flourished in the early 12th century and whose expressive carvings at Autun, Cluny, Vezelay and elsewhere are among the most original and distinctive religious artworks of that period.
Size: 3872px × 2592px
Location: Cathedral of Saint Lazarus of Autun, Autun, Saône-et-Loire, Bourgogne-Franche-Comté, France
Photo credit: © Terence Kerr / Alamy / Afripics
License: Royalty Free
Model Released: No
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