| One of six scenes from the life of Bernard flanking the central figure of Bernard in a Florentine altarpiece from c 1430. A nimbed Bernard in a white cowl and accompanied by two of his monks acknowledges two kneeling nuns being presented to him by the standing figure of Hildegard of Bingen, also nimbed. An imagined situation which is non-historical as Hildegard never met Bernard although they corresponded, but represents a symbolic truth, that Bernard, at least in that he did not make trouble for Hildegard, really did bless her Benedictine community. The crowns worn by the two nuns have been interpreted (by Kaftal & Dal Pra) as signifying their royal status, but it is more likely that they represent the tiaras worn by nuns on festive days mentioned in a letter from a 'magistra' of some canonesses on the Rhine which also aroused the curiosity of Hildegard's friend, Gilbert of Gembloux. Such tiaras are also known from some Cistercian nunneries. See also PA114-117 & PA119-20
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