SAINT GERTRUDE OF NIVELLES PATRON CATS CAT LOVERS HANDCRAFTED WOOD 7.75" PLAQUE

Description

Display Size Retablo Plaque:
Approximately
7.75"H x 3.5”W x 1”D
Made by hand in the USA
-
Ready to Display (Stand or Hang)
Pictures in Listing Depict Exact Inscription Found on Back of Retablo
This collection represents blessings and protection with patronages and prayers to address most aspects of our daily lives.
Saint Gertrude of Nevilles
631-659     Feast Day March 17    Patronage: Cats, Invoked against Rodents
"St. Gertrude, you were known for your compassion ans generosity. Help watch over my cat, a joyful blessing from the great Creator. May she be healthy, happy & safe in all her adventures."
Description:
Patron Saint of Cats and Cat Lovers, invoked against Rodents.
Born in 626 AD in Belgium, to Itta and Pepin of Landen. Her family was very pious. Itta founded two monasteries for monks and one for nuns. Gertrude was the abbess. She was known for her generosity to pilgrims and travelers. Upon her mother's death, Gertrude built churches, monasteries and hospices on the family estates. She relinquished her abbess position at age 30 so she could meditate, study and pray more. She died at the auspicious age of 33. She is often depicted with rodents running up her staff, which some say represent the souls in purgatory rising up into heaven. She is invoked against rodents and that is how she became patron of cats and cat lovers
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Carry a pocket saint/angel:
Some people carry saint/angels because it is their patron saint, as a devotion or a reminder of devotion and prayer.  They are also carried as a sort of protection, that is, if the saint/angel is blessed.
People carry pocket saint/angels with devotion, commitment, affection, and love.
Display a retablo:
They are d
isplayed in homes to honor the saint/angel or given as gifts of fortune and inspiration, retablos reflect a beloved historical tradition and cultural artistry.
History:
The retablo, or ʻboard behind the altarʼ, was originally created in New Mexico in the 1800ʼs in response to the lack of Bibles and Icons being sent from the church in Rome. The Santero (saint maker) painted retablos from pigment collected and ground from the local surroundings. The boards were hand hewed usually of ponderosa pine or tin. The practice has carried down through the generations and is still done this way today.
Artist: Lynn Garlick:
Her o
riginal designs are hand-carved and painted with watercolor or occasionally oil on the traditionally used ponderosa pine planks. Then the
high quality prints of the originals are
decoupaged onto pine boards, in an old school technique used for the Italian altar screens of medieval Europe and
are finished with polyurethane. These prints are produced with a deep appreciation of the santero and what has come before.