St Hugh of Lincoln is often depicted with a swan, because he was friends with a swan. The swan would follow Hugh around, eat from his hand, and reputedly attacked people who threatened his saintly human BFF. For this reason, the best pictures of St Hugh are the ones where the swan looks like it’s about to fuck you up. Like, massively.
MESS WITH ST HUGH AND HIS SWAN WILL END YOU.
Vincenzo Carducci, Apparition of Musical Angels to St Hugh of Lincoln, 1632
Unknown artist of the German school, Christ on the Cross with St Hugh, c.1600
Altarpiece from the Carthusian monastery of Saint-Honoré, Thuison-les-Abbeville, c.1490-1500
Detail of stained glass window, All Saints Church, Coleby, Lincolnshire
Detail of an altar carving from the church of St Maria, Buxheim, Germany
Giovanni della Robbia, tondo from the cloister of the Certosa del Galluzzo Monastery, Florence
Vincenzo Carducci, Apparition of Musical Angels to St Hugh of Lincoln, 1632
Unknown artist of the German school, Christ on the Cross with St Hugh, c.1600
Altarpiece from the Carthusian monastery of Saint-Honoré, Thuison-les-Abbeville, c.1490-1500
Detail of stained glass window, All Saints Church, Coleby, Lincolnshire
Detail of an altar carving from the church of St Maria, Buxheim, Germany
Giovanni della Robbia, tondo from the cloister of the Certosa del Galluzzo Monastery, Florence