Part of the long-standing Dissertationes Historicae series, volume 42 - devoted to representations of Saint Thomas Aquinas and edited by Émilie Roffidal and Claire Rousseau - originates from a call for papers launched to mark the anniversaries of Thomas's birth (1225), death (1274), and canonization (1323), commemorated between 2023 and 2025.

The volume addresses a subject that historiography has long neglected. While numerous studies have examined individual depictions of the Saint, no comprehensive monograph has been dedicated to the iconography of Saint Thomas, with the sole exception of Aliénor Cambournac's book [1], which focuses on post-Tridentine artworks up to 1700. In the past twenty-five years, only a handful of scholars have engaged with the topic in a sustained way: Daniel Russo has explored Thomas's iconography in fourteenth-century Italian painting [2], Mie Kuroiwa has analyzed illuminations portraying the author in manuscripts preserved in Parisian libraries that transmit Aquinas works [3], and Jean-Baptiste Brenet has investigated the philosophical dimensions of Thomas's "triumphs," particularly the figure of Averroes. [4]

Although these studies provide a valuable foundation, most do not offer a long-term perspective. The volume under review fills this gap by examining depictions of Saint Thomas from the fourteenth to the twentieth century. Yet, by adopting a case-study approach, it does not attempt a systematic reconstruction of the evolution of his iconography. As the editors explain in their preface, this choice stems from the remarkable diversity of artworks dedicated to Saint Thomas (11). Their stated aim is therefore to "restituer dans son contexte de production chacune des expressions artistiques pour mieux en décrypter le discours sous-jacent" (9) - to situate each artistic expression within its context of production so as to better decode its underlying discourse. This aim is indeed achieved by the contributors. For instance, the essay by Marika Räsänen - an acknowledged expert on the cult of the Aquinas relics- on the fifteenth-century frescoes of Loreto Aprutino interprets the scenes of Thomas's death through both the lens of Tocco's Ystoria (1323), the key hagiographic source, and the political ambitions of the patrons, who were members of the Saint's own family.

The book is organized into three thematic sections. The first section (Naissance de l'iconographie thomasienne) opens with a contribution by Innocent Smith, O.P., a leading specialist in Dominican liturgy, who analyzes the chants chosen for the Mass of Saint Thomas Aquinas, demonstrating how the combination of older and newer compositions shaped the Saint's representation in liturgical manuscripts. It continues with the aforementioned study by Räsänen and concludes with an essay by Fabiana Susini and Fanny Weitel, offering an overview of the "triumphs" of Thomas in Italy between the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries.

The second section (Conceptualiser la spiritualité, peindre la sainteté) begins with Bernard Cosnet's essay. Having previously devoted a monograph to representations of the virtues,[5] Cosnet here explores Thomas's own virtuousness - already emphasized by Tocco in the Ystoria - and its artistic expression in Trecento Italy. A substantial chronological leap follows with Ralph Dekoninck's study of a now-lost painting by Zurbarán (1629) depicting Saint Bonaventure revealing a crucifix to Saint Thomas. Dekoninck proposes a philosophical interpretation grounded in Thomistic thought, whose complexity, as the introduction itself concedes (24), defies easy summary. The section concludes with Marc Lindeijer's analysis of twentieth-century holy cards preserved in the collection of the Bollandist Society.

The third section (Les images de Thomas d'Aquin dans l'Europe et au Nouveau Monde) introduces three new themes. Arnauld Berjon de Lavergnée and Véronique Meyer co-author a study of Simon Vouet's depiction of one of Thomas's miracles - the episode in which the Saint receives a girdle of chastity after being abducted and tempted by a prostitute sent by his relatives. Marie-Claude Homet turns to artworks produced in Provence after the Council of Trent, where Dominican convents were particularly active between the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries and attracted several distinguished painters. Finally, Almerindo Eduardo Ojeda examines engravings of Saint Thomas's depictions in Europe and their counterparts produced in the colonies of Latin America.

As becomes clear, the volume's scope is remarkably broad, which makes it difficult to draw general conclusions about the iconography of Saint Thomas. Rather than establishing an overarching narrative, the case studies presented demonstrate the sheer variety and abundance of surviving images of the Saint. They also reveal the multiplicity of locally developed forms and iconographies of Aquinas, thus reaffirming what Joanna Cannon had already emphasized with regard to Dominican art - namely, the necessity of considering works both within their local contexts and within the broader institutional framework of the Order. [6]

Overall, some essays offer genuinely original insights, while others are more synthetic in nature. The contributors deserve particular credit for focusing not only on well-known works but also on those hitherto overlooked. Equally commendable is their inclusion of both public commissions and private devotional objects, as well as their adoption of diverse methodologies - ranging from serial approaches to comparative analyses and the integration of textual and visual interpretation.

The greatest merit of the volume lies in directing attention to a flourishing yet still unexplored field of study: it provides a valuable first overview of the iconography of Saint Thomas Aquinas, highlighting both the richness of the material and the methodological challenges inherent in studying it across time and geography. Rather than concluding the discussion, it opens promising new avenues for systematic research into the visual construction of Saint Thomas Aquinas's image.

Notes:

[1] Aliénor Cambournac: L'iconographie de saint Thomas d'Aquin après le Concile de Trente (1562-1700), Paris 2009.

[2] Daniel Russo: Saint philosophe et théologien chrétien: L'iconographie de Thomas d'Aquin dans les milieux dominicains italiens au XIVe siècle, in: Portraits de philosophes: De l'idée à l'image (Actes du colloque de Dijon, 18 - 19 novembre 1999), éd. p. B. Curatolo / J. Poirier, Dijon 2001, 95 - 105.

[3] Mie Kuroiwa: L'iconographie de saint Thomas d'Aquin dans les manuscrits parisiens enluminés: Manuscrits des œuvres de Thomas d'Aquin (c. 1250 - c. 1510), in: Language, Culture, and Communication 4 (2012), 1 - 33.

[4] Jean-Baptiste Brenet: Le dehors dedans: Averroès en peinture, Paris 2024.

[5] Bertrand Cosnet: Sous le regard des vertus: Italie, XIVe siècle, Tours 2015.

[6] Joanna Cannon: Religious Poverty, Visual Riches. Art in the Dominican Churches of Central Italy in the Thirteenth and Fourteenth Centuries, New Haven 2013.

Vittoria Magnoler