ABSTRACT
Saint Veronica with the Sudarium by the Master of Saint Veronic, datable c. 1420, in The National Gallery, London. The character of Veronica, who symbolizes the “true image” relic that she holds, developed from legends originating in the fourth century, a period in the West marked by a rise in reverence for early Christian saints in general. Veronica is usually depicted in Early Modern European works of art as a youthful woman who holds a cloth with an image of Christ’s visage, as for example in Saint Veronica with the Sudarium by the Master of Saint Veronica, datable c. 1420, in The National Gallery, London. Tracing the origins and peripatetic route of the Veronica legend is inherently difficult but possible. Many of the stories about her in the Middle Ages, from the eighth century forward, were embellishments on preceding ones with changes in plot details or new endings.
