Leaf from a Gradual, with the Initial O ("O virginale"): St. Clare

The association of Saint Clare of Assisi with the monstrance derives from a legend in her hagiography. When Assisi was attacked in 1243 under the orders of Emperor Frederick II, a sick Saint Clare went to the monastery in order to pray, bringing with her a monstrance bearing the Eucharistic host. While Clare prayed, a child’s voice came from the monstrance and promised to protect her. This gradual leaf references this legend, portraying Saint Clare holding the Eucharistic host in a monstrance, along with a white lily, an attribute representing her purity. Placing strong emphasis on the importance of the Eucharist, the image would have been an appropriate decoration for the introit sung at Mass on Saint Clare’s feast day, August 12. This leaf comes from a gradual that was part of a large set of choir books commissioned by Cardinal Johannes Bessarion, a leading humanist scholar who also worked to reconcile the Catholic and Orthodox Churches.