Martyrdom of Saint Stephen

Stephen is represented on the broader east side of the capital. His haloed head is destroyed; it is positioned in front of a triangle that projects in relief from the console block, and forms a kind of mandorla. The two companions at his side raise their arms either in prayer or in approbation. The north side again shows the Saint in an aureole at the centre, as he is being led to torture by two men. The stoning of the Saint is shown on the west side. In pose and position the martyr corresponds exactly to the passage in the Acts of the Apostles: “And he knelt down and cried with a loud voice: ‘Lord, do not hold this sin against them’. And when he had said this, he fell asleep. “(Acts 7:55-60). On the south side the Saint’s sarcophagus rests on two pillars and bears the inscription SEPVLCRV [M] (on the lid) BEATI ST[E]PH[AN]I (on the front side). It is the “grave of Saint Stephen” which was discovered in 415 and from which the bones of the protomartyr were removed. Above the sarcophagus two men are carrying the relics of the Saint in a chest covered by a cloth. Here, the hand of God is shown on the console block, usually it can be found in the scene of stoning (and in a similar way in innumerable representations, e.g. in the Carolingian crypt of Saint-Germain in Auxerre or on the tympanum of the north portal of the Cathedral of Cahors, c. 1140). Here however it attests to the genuineness of the rediscovered grave, which had been placed in doubt. The quite special significance attached to the representation of the finding of the Saint’s relics is emphasized by the fact that it is found on the gallery side of the cloister and that it is the only side of the capital to contain explicit inscriptions.

BEATI SEPVLCRV[M] relic grave stoning Stephen hand God manus inscription ST[E]PH[AN]I