Jesus

Crucifix of King Ferdinand & Queen Sancha, circa 1063, Ivory and Jet, Madrid Archeological Museum The final scenes in Christ's life (chronologically and cosmologically) reveal his excruciating transformation from human sacrifice to redeemer and ruling god in heaven. Above is the first carved crucifix made in Spain. A crucifix differs from a cross in that it depicts Christ's body nailed upon the cross. So, it is more explicit than symbolic. This crucifix is Romanesque, and i

Flagellation of Christ, Abbey of St. Austremoine, Issoire, 12th century After the representations of Christ rather remote from the moral teachings of the religion (Christ as divine ruler or as harbinger of a new age), there are the stories which present him as an ideal human, or even super-human. Medieval churches were covered inside and out with tableaux of these stories. There developed a standard of depiction which made Christ and the pertinent moments of his life on earth

A Young Christ hands the Law to his Disciples, 4th c., Basilica San Lorenzo, Milan I've wondered and read about the great changes Europeans underwent when they converted (usually at the command of their rulers) to Christianity. Polytheism presented divinities for several crucial aspects of their daily lives--and deaths. A change to monotheism required adherence to one god, who could not be represented in a graven image. The Christian conversion of a town or state gave the n

Resurrection of Lazarus, 12th c. capital, San Piedro el Viejo, Huesca, Spain Stating the obvious: medieval Christian churches reference...

Medieval artists had a standard repertoire of scenes from the life of Jesus to reproduce in churches and personal religious items. ...

Up in the remote hills in northern Spain, the monastery of San Juan de la Pena contains the ruins of a tiny cloister, with magnificent...