Altarpiece of Saint Romain de Blaye

This stone altarpiece comes from the abbey church of Saint-Denis. For a long time it was thought to depict scenes from the life of St. Benedict. It is now known that it depicts the life of Saint Romain de Blaye, one of the evangelists of Aquitaine in the 4th century.

The relics of this saint were also presented in a chapel of the east end of the abbatial church of Saint-Denis: the first chapel opening onto the ambulatory on the southern side.

The altarpiece was created as part of the gradual replacement of radiant chapels' decoration during the 13th century.

The collection of sculpted reliefs created on this occasion marks a significant milestone in the art of sculpture. From that time on, the altarpieces were designed as linear compositions with a plain, flat background, and no longer in compartments with scenes following each other with no continuity.

Here, two episodes of the life of Saint Roman de Blaye frame the Baptism of Christ represented in the centre: on the one side, the Saint receives the help of Saint Martin in his combat against the idols; on the other, Saint Martin, who has gone to his bedside, is present at his death.