Readers occasionally inquire about the image in the blog header above. Though some have recognized the stag with the crucifix between its antlers as belonging to some saintly legend or other (or to the Jagermeister logo!), only a few have been able to correctly place the story or the artwork thus far.
So, the image in the blog header above is a detail close-up taken from Albrecht Dürer's engraving of Saint Eustace, which was completed some time around 1501. The piece depicts the conversion of Placidus, a second-century Roman general who experienced a vision of a crucifix between the antlers of a stag he had been pursuing during a hunt.
Legend has it that the stag turned to the Roman and spoke to him in Christ's voice, instructing Placidus to go and be baptized by the Bishop of Rome and take on the name Eustace. Dürer's engraving captures the essential moment of Placidus's spiritual conversion to Christianity.
I have a personal affinity for the Saint Eustace story and stags - and the story of Saint Hubertus as well! - because it is analogous to a spiritual experience of my own. That experience did not involve any stags with crucifixes betwixt their antlers, but it still served as a conversion all the same, or, in my specific case, a re-conversion.
Note added: Click on the image to view a larger, more detailed image of the engraving. Well worth it.
So, the image in the blog header above is a detail close-up taken from Albrecht Dürer's engraving of Saint Eustace, which was completed some time around 1501. The piece depicts the conversion of Placidus, a second-century Roman general who experienced a vision of a crucifix between the antlers of a stag he had been pursuing during a hunt.
Legend has it that the stag turned to the Roman and spoke to him in Christ's voice, instructing Placidus to go and be baptized by the Bishop of Rome and take on the name Eustace. Dürer's engraving captures the essential moment of Placidus's spiritual conversion to Christianity.
I have a personal affinity for the Saint Eustace story and stags - and the story of Saint Hubertus as well! - because it is analogous to a spiritual experience of my own. That experience did not involve any stags with crucifixes betwixt their antlers, but it still served as a conversion all the same, or, in my specific case, a re-conversion.
Note added: Click on the image to view a larger, more detailed image of the engraving. Well worth it.
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