Alanus' descriptions of the visions and sermons of Dominic, supposed to have been revealed to him in 1460, are, according to Bishop John T. McNicholas O.P., not to be regarded as historical. Some of Alanus' more colorful accounts have been attributed to oratorical imaginings designed to enliven sermons. While granting that Alanus de Rupe was a pious and learned person, Herbert Thurston held that his visions were those of an individual "deluded" and "a victim of the most astounding hallucinations". While conceding that Alanus was a very earnest and devout man, Thurston also says that he based his revelations on the imaginary testimony of writers that never existed.