17th Century Flemish Stained Glass Window Depicting Saint Augustine.

Stained-glass window depicting Saint Augustine,
Flanders, 17th century.

This small stained-glass window depicts Saint Augustine, one of the four great doctors of the Latin Church, in a classic iconography of the Western Christian tradition.

The saint is depicted full-length, in a three-quarter view, in the center of a rural landscape with rolling hills, punctuated by a few dwellings. He is represented according to his ecclesiastical status as bishop, identifiable by the traditional attributes: the miter, the pastoral crozier with a golden scroll, and the richly decorated liturgical cope. These elements indicate his function as a prelate, in particular his episcopate in Hippo, North Africa, in the 4th century. The golden halo surrounding his head marks his status as a canonized saint. His face, bearded and serious, is treated with a certain naturalistic precision. In his left hand, Augustine holds a flaming heart. This attribute, absent from the oldest representations, has been imposed since the modern era as a symbol of the saint's inner life, in particular his ardent love for God, as he expresses it in his Confessions. It is therefore an iconographic element with strong theological and emotional value, which synthesizes the Augustinian mystical and intellectual experience.

The architectural frame of the stained-glass window, with a yellow-orange border, is simple but highlights the central figure. The relatively detailed landscape background places the scene in an indeterminate temporality, disconnected from the real historical environment of Saint Augustine. A bare tree on the left introduces a verticality into the composition and reinforces the symbolism of the inner life or knowledge, according to possible allegorical readings.