Bust of Simon of Trent

His eyes turned heavenward, this boy holds branches of palm and laurel in the manner of a Christian martyr. The sag in his chubby cheeks and the deep circles beneath his eyes are the features of a dead child. Such details help identify the figure as Simon of Trent, a two-year-old whose body was discovered on Easter 1475 in Trent, Italy. His corpse, which bore evidence of torture, was soon rumored to perform miracles. The town’s Jewish population was wrongfully accused of ritual murder, inflaming anti-Semitism and inspiring a cult of worship to which this sculpture may have belonged.