St. Bartholomew the Apostle (JMAS 03) Metal Tree Decoration

This roundel features a pensive St. Bartholomew (also known as Nathaniel; 1st century) contemplating the sharpness of a knife. Brought to Jesus by St. Philip, the Apostle with whom he is most often associated, St. Bartholomew preached the Gospel after Christ’s Ascension in Asia Minor, Ethiopia, India, and Armenia. Traditionally, he met a most gruesome martyrdom being flayed or skinned alive. For this reason, his major attributes are a tanner’s or skinning knife... and (not shown here) a human skin! Fittingly, he is patron saint of butchers and leather workers—namely tanners, bookbinders, and shoemakers. + Feast: August 24 + Image Credit (JMAS 03): Antique image of St. Bartholomew the Apostle from a late 19th-century devotional print in chromolithography with gilt accents originally published by Josef Müller, Art Publisher, Munich, Germany, from the designer’s private collection of religious ephemera. The image is one of twelve in the publisher’s Apostle Series (No. 12155).