A Sino-Portuguese Saint Francis receiving the stigmata

This rare hardwood sculpture - probably teak, Tectona grandis - portraying Saint Francis of Assisi, preserves evidence of its original polychrome decoration. The beardless figure, standing on curled, spiralled clouds, with his arms raised, hands now missing, and slightly bent knees[1], is attired in the Franciscan Habit tied at the waist by its characteristic corded rope. Considering the posture, it is fair to assume that the Saint is portrayed in the moment of receiving the Stigmata, the five Holy Wounds of Christ that he was marked with in 1224, during a vision in which a crucified Seraph, a six wings angel, appeared to him, or while displaying them to his devotees for contemplation.

Founder of the Franciscan Order, Francis of Assisi (ca. 1181-1226) lived a life of charity and preaching that would encourage the 13th century renewal of Christian spirituality. Later, the missionary activity of the Franciscan friars in Asia, especially in southern China and The Philippines where this large altar figure was undoubtedly carved, would instil in the newly converted hearts and minds the Saint’s pious teachings.

Despite being a rare sculptural representation, the iconography of Saint Francis Receiving the Stigmata is abundant in paintings and other two-dimensional imagery. A similar printed depiction with the kneeling Saint (ca. 1514), engraved by the Netherlandish artist Lucas van Leyden (ca. 1494-1533), can be seen in the British Museum in London (inv. Kk,6.124). Another such likeness, dating from the late 16th century and hence of similar date to our sculpture, produced by the Flemish engraver Jan Sadeler I (1559-1600) after an original by the Italian artist Bernardo Castello (1557-1629), is also kept in the same London based museum (inv. 1949,1008.74).

A large 17th century ivory carved figure of the standing Saint Francis (ca. 50 cm in height), probably produced in the Philippines from a high-quality Spanish Baroque prototype, is exhibited in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York (inv. 16.32.251). This particular sculpture, whose shape follows the natural curvature of the elephant tusk, is nonetheless defined by stronger European facial features than the present wooden depiction.

Belonging to the National Museum of the Philippines, Museum of Fine Arts, and probably dating from the 18th century, another three-dimensional figure portraying a standing and bearded Saint Francis exposing the Stigmata, equally missing his separately carved hands, is displayed at the Ablaza Hall. Produced under Franciscan patronage, a Missionary Order that settled in the Philippines in 1577 and soon established parishes throughout the territory, it was most likely carved by a local mestizo artist.

The pronounced Chinese characteristics of our sculpture, namely its almond-shaped eyes and small straight nose, the habit drapery folds and, most importantly, the quintessentially Chinese spiralled waves (sword pommel scrolls or jianhuan), point to its making by either a Filipino artist of Chinese or mestizo origin or, even more likely, by a Chinese carver working for catholic patrons in Southern China.[2]