Saint-roch Large 17th Century Polychrome Carved Wooden Statue

Large polychrome wooden statue from the 17th century depicting Saint-Roch wearing a cloak which he raises to show the wound on his right thigh. He is surrounded by the dog bringing him the bread on his left and an angel on his right. We notice two shells on his chest and his gourd belt. His left hand and staff are missing, as well as the end of the angel's right foot and the end of the dog's left paw. A lack also of part of the base that does not hinder the stability of the statue. Significant polychromy wear. Height 103 cm, width 65 cm. Saint Roch, born in Montpellier around 1350, died in Voghera in Italy around 1378, is a French pilgrim and wonderworker, honored on August 16, to whom the Church grants the canonical title of confessor (because having suffered much in the service of the faith but without suffering martyrdom). In terms of popular worship, he is mainly the patron saint of all pilgrims as well as many brotherhoods or corporations including surgeons, dermatologists and apothecaries (pharmacists). His cult, born first in France and Italy, became very popular and spread all over the world. Orphan and heir to a large fortune, he decides to part with all his possessions and go on a pilgrimage to Rome. During his stay, he cured the sick of the plague which was raging at that time, by tracing the sign of the cross on them. He contracts the terrible disease himself and decides to isolate himself in a forest. The legend says that a dog brought him bread every day and that a spring miraculously gushed out to water him. An angel came to treat his wounds. Healed, he returned to Montpellier where, victim of a betrayal, he ended his days in prison. His cult developed gradually in the 15th century and his canonization did not take place until the 17th century. However, its popularity was immense as long as the plague epidemics lasted, although it declined somewhat thereafter. In the 19th century, it returned to center stage thanks to a “specialty transfer” which took place towards the protection of livestock. Saint-Roch is almost always represented as a pilgrim, with staff, shell, cape and gourd. He is accompanied by a dog holding a loaf of bread in its mouth, and sometimes by an angel who heals his wounds. Saint-Roch generally raises his coat in order to discover a bubo on his thigh, which makes it possible to differentiate him from Saint-Jacques, another pilgrim.