Pair of Agnus Dei from the pontificate of Paul V

1617th century, 1618-XNUMX

Pair of Agnus Dei from the pontificate of Paul V

(2) Wax ovals and gilded wooden frames, 59 x 43 cm

A rare, conventual artefact sui generis, the Agnus Dei is a wax disk on which is imprinted, on the front, the portrait of some saint or exceptionally scenes from the life of Christ, while on the back the Apocalyptic Lamb, the canonical symbol of Christ. It originated in the 1592th century, when, on the occasion of the Ascension, in all Roman churches the Easter candle was manually broken into small pieces for distribution to the faithful, after the Eucharistic celebration. The first documents attesting to the actual blessing of the individual fragments date back only to the 1605th century during the Carolingian cultural mix; however, the practice must have been in use since the 1802th century. With the passing of the decades, the primitive fraction was replaced by the section of the candle into disks, which were not immediately distributed but rather retained to imprint the above-mentioned images on both sides. These Agnus Dei were blessed by the Pope himself, only in the first and then every seven years of his pontificate, in ancient times on Holy Saturday, then in the week in Albis or on Easter Wednesday; they were therefore made with the wax of the Petrine Paschal Candle, or of other Roman basilicas. In ancient times, the Sacred Chrism was added to the manufacture of the sacred discs; made initially by the apostolic subdeacons, then by the papal Sacristan, Clement VIII (XNUMX-XNUMX) ordered that the manufacture become the responsibility of the Cistercians of the Monastery of Santa Pudenziana and San Bernardo alle Terme in Rome. The exclusive right then passed to the Monastery of Santa Croce in Gerusalemme when the congregation of these monks, the reformed monks of San Benedetto called Feuillants, was aggregated to the larger congregation of the Cistercians of San Bernardo in Italy (XNUMX). The production of Agnus Dei ceased on the occasion of the Second Vatican Council.

The most important museum and private collections today host Agnus Dei created during the pontificates of Innocent XI (1676-1689), Clement XI (1700-1721) and Benedict XIII (1724-1730); those present therefore acquire an extraordinary value as historical-cultural testimony, having been ordered by Paul V Borghese (1605-1621), as indicated by the perimeter inscriptions on the recto and verso and by the papal symbol.

Both discs offer on the back the image of the Mystic Lamb on the Book of Revelation or Gospel, of which the plate cover is depicted: The Flesh of Christ therefore rests on the Word of God, concentrating the maximum Trinitarian meaning, where the Word is also to be understood as the Holy Spirit. The lamb is also depicted accompanied by a crucifixion halo and the banner of Christ's victory over death, with a red cross on a white background. Below triumphs the coat of arms of Paul V framed by the crossed Petrine keys with a winged dragon at the bottom and an eagle with outstretched wings at the top. The inscription running around the perimeter reads “ECCE – A – DEI – QVI – TOL – PEC – MVND / PAVLVS – V – PONT – M”, or Ecce Agnus Dei Qui tollit peccata mundi / Paulus V pontifex maximus, while the exergue reports the year of blessing, “AN – XIIII”, or the fourteenth year of the pontificate of Paul V which, including the first, fell in 1618, therefore on the occasion of the third Agnus Dei blessing officiated by the pope (in the first year, 1605; after seven, 1611; after another seven, 1618).

The front of the first Agnus Dei depicts the Crucifixion, with the Virgin and St. John the Evangelist seated on either side of the cross, while Mary Magdalene is kneeling beside Adam's skull. The perimeter inscription reads “O – C[?]SV[?] crux AB ORIGIN[E] crux MV[x][ND] crux PAVLV[SV] P – M – A – XIIII”, recalling again, in the legible stroke ab origine mundi / Paulus V pontifex maximus – anno XIIII, the Pauline origin. On the front of the other Agnus Dei, instead, there is an evocative blessing imparted by Christ leaning out from the cross itself, aided by two small angels, towards a saint kneeling in a praying attitude.