Description
Simone Martini’s altarpiece shows Saint Louis of Toulouse, a Franciscan and bishop, bestowing a crown upon his brother Robert of Anjou, king of Naples. Two angels crown the saint, while the predella tells five stories from his life and miracles. Painted after Louis’s canonization, it unites devotion, courtly refinement, and a message about Angevin royal legitimacy.
The painting does more than celebrate two brothers. Robert became king after Louis had relinquished his dynastic claim in favour of a religious calling. By showing the former heir placing the crown upon the reigning monarch, Simone turns this history into an argument for political legitimacy. Earthly authority seems subordinate to sainthood, yet also receives a visible endorsement from it before the altar’s viewers. The luxurious materials are inseparable from that message.
