St. Pope Leo the Great (c.400-461) is perhaps most famous for his encounter with Attila the Hun. The Roman government and army had fallen apart, and Attila was sacking and pillaging cities all over Italy. As he was preparing to sack the city of Rome, Pope Leo went out to meet him. This dramatic picture illustrates that encounter. Attila had great earthly power with soldiers and weapons. Leo had nothing but the rightness of his cause. Alone and unarmed, Leo stood in the light of truth. He turned Attila away. He saved Rome.

Leo was the first pope to be called the Great, and there were lots of reasons why besides sending Attila away. As the Roman Empire was falling apart, he was able to hold civilization together by consolidating Church power. He was a theologian who laid the foundation for the fourth ecumenical council, which answered many subtle questions about the nature of the Christ. He was made a Doctor of the Church, and was called by our recent Pope Benedict XVI, "one of the most important Popes in Church history."

This painting was done in the Golden Age of Illustration, one of our favorite styles. We love how art in that style is so dramatic, how richly it tells the story! Note how Leo is in the light and how massive Attila and his horse are! Attila is like the advancing dark cloud, with his back to the light. In late Roman times, Christians thought that sunlight was another facet of God, along with such things as truth and beauty. In that sense, Attila has turned his back to God. We have yet to discover the artist, but by the style we think it was done in the late 1920s by an American Catholic artist. Americans love dramatic things!

!!IMPORTANT!! The image is smaller than the paper! There is a white border around the image. About 1/2" on 5x7", 1.3" on 8.5x11, and 1.6" on 11x14. The border gives our prints a finished look, and lets them look good framed without a matt.

- Acid-free matte paper
- Archival pigments, rated to last for generations.
- Cardboard backer
- Above story of the art
- Enclosed in a tight-fitting, crystal clear bag.

Thanks for your interest!
Sue & John

You might also enjoy original Catholic Art and Jewelry by me, Sue Kouma Johnson, here on Etsy at www.Etsy.com/shop/TreeOfHeaven

Also, check out our Catholic Quote shop, where we are pairing authentic quotes from Saints with Art: www.Etsy.com/shop/CatholicQuote

"In order to communicate the message entrusted to her by Christ, the Church needs art." ~ St. Pope John Paul II

Original image is out-of-copyright. Descriptive text and image alterations (hence the whole new image) © by Sue Kouma Johnson - Classic Catholic Art.