The Apostle St James the Less
The Apostle St James the Less was the first of the 12 Apostles to be martyred.
There are several people called James in the New Testament, and they are often confused with each other. St James the Less is often considered to be one of Jesus’s brothers and the author of the Epistle of St James.
He was martyred in 62 or 63 CE by being stoned and beaten to death with a fuller’s club, a kind of club that was used to full wet woollen cloth.
The statue
The fuller’s club can also be seen on the statue of St James. The statue is one of the five original statues from the West Front that have been preserved from the Middle Ages. It is now on display in the Archbishop’s Palace Museum.
-
Feast day
1 May (Gaukmesse, Cuckoo Mass). Since 1969: 3 May
-
Attribute
Fuller’s club
-
Patron saint of
Friesland, fullers, tanners, confectioners, piemakers and hatters
-
The sculpture
The statue currently adorning the West Front was reconstructed and carved by Arne Kvidbergskår.
