# Walbert and Bertille

The saint and saintess occupy the last third of the face. They are separated by a tree with four curved branches and a trunk that thickens towards the ground.

Saint Walbert, on the left, has a median parting and a long, upturned moustache. His wife, Saint Bertille, wears an aristocratic tiara. They are both wearing long sashes tied in the middle. The sash falls over a pleated, flared skirt, with vermiculated pleats in the case of Saint Bertille's skirt. The saint also wears a veil tied to her wrists.

The treatment of the skirt with vermiculated pleats is a frequent motif in Namur art, taken from Languedoc and Italian formulas used in the 12th century and found in Rheims and Tournai, two possible relays of Mosan craftsmanship.

Saint Walbert fights the lion with his right hand, and holds on to the central tree with his left. Similarly, St. Bertille is also clutching the tree with her right hand, while her left hand holds a book of Scripture against her chest. The tree separating the two saints represents the Tree of Life, symbolizing the Cross and Paradise, appearing as a reward for this victory over paganism.

Lexicon :

Hagiography: the science of recounting the lives of saints.

Vermiculated: decorated with small sinuous striations.