The Omnipresent Death in the Iconography of Saint Simeon’s Shrine in Zadar

In this paper the discussion topics comprise some aspects of the complex iconography of death on one of the masterpieces of European Gothic goldsmiths’ work, St Simeon’s shrine in Zadar, the work of Franjo (Francesco) from Milan, who signed it in 1380, and his workshop. The allusion to death in the hagiography of St Simeon, the power and the character of the saint’s relics, also the royal devotion behind the commission of the reliquary, will be considered as the most likely explanation for such a high occurrence of direct references to death in the various scenes and also the explanation for the analogies with European sculpture prompted by the overall shape of the shrine. These considerations will stress again the originality of the iconographic concept of this monumental silver reliquary, while focusing attention on the fact that it encompasses also the allusions to death of historical personages, or even depictions of them dying or mourning their dead relatives, which is unprecedented in the history of medieval art, as it has been already pointed out in art historical literature (A. Munk). The character of the holy relic influenced the shape of the reliquary of St Simeon, especially its construction (figures of angels as supports suggesting Elevatio animae are the primary interest of this paper) and its segmentation, which were borrowed from the shape of some of the contemporary Gothic funerary monuments. The attention of the authoress will focus on some of the most influential works in Italian Gothic sculpture in the attempt to trace the goldsmith’s inspiration more closely by aid of the iconographical motif of four angels which were often forgotten as an important part of the original appearance of the shrine.