To Sit, One at Your Right Hand

This statue of St James is part of the eleventh-century Portico of Glory in the cathedral dedicated to him, Catedral Basílica de Santiago de Compostela. It is the work of Master Mateo and is remarkable for the astonishing delicacy of its carving in granite. James is situated at the centre of the pillar (trumeau column) underneath Christ seated in Majesty, greeting those who enter. Pilgrims are invited to see themselves as sharing a history with the biblical prophets, evangelists, and the heavenly host who are depicted in stone all around him. There are two apostles called James. One of them, later known as James the Great, is a son of Zebedee, and the brother of John—traditionally thought to be the author of the Gospel of John, the Johannine Letters, and Revelation (the book whose vision of heaven the Portico of Glory evokes). The other is James, son of Alpheus, later known as James the Less. We know more about James the son of Zebedee. He was a fisherman. He and his brother had a nickname: Boanerges (‘sons of thunder’). James offended King Herod (probably Herod Agrippa I) and was the first disciple to be martyred (Acts 12:2). This was his experience of baptism into the eternal life of Jesus Christ (Mark 10:35–45). Today, he is best known for being the patron saint of pilgrimage. The camino, or pilgrimage road, to Santiago de Compostela is taken by people of all faiths and none. The scallop shell has become his symbol, reminding sea-going pilgrims that he was also a fisherman. The pilgrims’ destination is the Romanesque cathedral that houses what are traditionally believed to be the Apostle’s relics. But the Portico of Glory allows St James to tell a greater story. In other examples of Romanesque doorways (e.g. Chartres, Autun, Rouen, Reims) the figure on the central pillar is standing. In Compostella, St James is seated, as though a bishop, for whom the chair (cathedra, in Latin) is the emblem of their teaching office in succession to the Apostles. James is also holding a pilgrim’s staff, symbolic of leading a pilgrim Church, and a scroll which says, Misit me Dominus, ‘the Lord sent me’: to tell us about heaven. References Murray, Peter and Linda Murray (eds). 1996. The Oxford Companion to Christian Art and Architecture (Oxford: Oxford University Press), pp. 248–49