A FLEMISH SEPIA STAINED GLASS ROUNDEL OF THE TRIUMPH OF ECCLESIA OVER SYNAGOGA, Ecclesia shown as a crowned maiden riding on a hart, holding aloft a sword in her right hand and a clock in her left, the stag trampling over the prostrate figure of Synagoga, also a maiden, wearing an ornate dress decorated with eyes and an elaborate headdress, holding a broken trumpet in her right hand, framed by a semi-circle of roundels depicting the twelve signs of the zodiac (somewhat rubbed), first half 16th Century

Details
A FLEMISH SEPIA STAINED GLASS ROUNDEL OF THE TRIUMPH OF ECCLESIA OVER SYNAGOGA, Ecclesia shown as a crowned maiden riding on a hart, holding aloft a sword in her right hand and a clock in her left, the stag trampling over the prostrate figure of Synagoga, also a maiden, wearing an ornate dress decorated with eyes and an elaborate headdress, holding a broken trumpet in her right hand, framed by a semi-circle of roundels depicting the twelve signs of the zodiac (somewhat rubbed), first half 16th Century
9¼in. (23.5cm.) diam.

Lot Essay

The sword-bearing crowned maiden trampling over another female figure corresponds to a traditional image of the Triumph of Ecclesia. Likewise, the broken trumpet held by the prostrate maiden relates to the subdued figure of Synagoga, whose voice has been silenced. However, the presence of the clock and the hart, and the human eyes on Synagogue's robe are less easily explained. The clock probably refers to the wisdom and validity of the New Church, and the hart is a traditional symbol for Christ, the foundation of the Church, common in Gothic Divine Bestiaries. The eyes may simply signify evil or possibly the jealousy of the Synagogue towards Christ and His Church. The signs of the zodiac are characteristic ecclesiastical symbols that charter the annual cycle within which the Church celebrated its feasts.

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