Martyrdom of St Apollonia from the Coëtivy Hours

This miniature shows Apollonia, one of the early Christian virgin martyrs. Rather than give up her chastity, she threw herself upon a burning pyre. As seen here, she is frequently shown having her teeth pulled from her mouth, one of the tortures she endured before her death. Typical of medieval illumination, the figures are painted in contemporary, rather than historical, fashions and settings.