BackSt Christopher
St Christopher, the patron saint of travellers, is not mentioned in the Bible and instead is a figure of legend. He is often shown, as in this statuette, carrying the infant Jesus and a staff.
The story went that Christopher was a large man who carried travellers across a river. A child asked to be carried but became heavier with each step. The child then revealed that he was Christ, and said Christopher had just carried the weight of the world on his shoulders. He gave Christopher a staff, which flowered the next day.
- Figure of St Christopher carrying the infant Jesus and a staff
- Spain, about 1530
- Museum no. 178-1864
