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Passover is not always on the eve of the Sabbath; for example, this year it is Thursday, April 1. The accepted Christian chronology of the Last Supper presumes that Passover that year was also on a Thursday night, which was when the Last Supper was held-- hence the commemoration of the institution of the eucharist by the Last Supper in the Maundy Thursday services of the Church. Christ was tried on Friday morning and executed between noon and 3 pm, which is when Good Friday services are traditionally held. He then rose on Sunday - the third day. He was never held to have been executed on the Sabbath; indeed, the Gospels recount how he was hastily buried in order for it to be done before sundown, and observation of the Sabbath was why the women did not go to his tomb to complete his burial rites until Sunday, when they discovered he had risen. This is at least the modern and early modern understanding; I presume the medieval was not any different. Sharon Arnoult SWT-History Elena Lemeneva wrote: > > First of all, thanks to all for your brain-storming! > > Christine, the address you gave does work! > There is, however, a splendid collection of the Danish kalkmalerier: > http://www.kalkmalerier.dk/english/search.htm > for the LS one has to search for "nadveren" (i.e., nadveren Ting) > > Christopher, I apologize, this were not you suffering hangover (but this was my birthday that we celebrated!): I checked the Ravenna image once again today, with a better computer (and better eyesight, I guess), and yes, you're absolutely right, what I'd taken for a shadow of a single fish is the second one. > > As for the special feeding of Judas: I remember having seen a painted table in the Spitalkirche in GÜnzburg, with Jesus literally putting his finger deep into Judas's mouth (Judas is on the right from Jesus!). Ottfried, thank you for the reference, I will check "Judastraditionen." > > Concerning the date of the LS: I am now completely puzzled. If I am not mistaken, the main objection of the Jews against the whole story of Passions is that Jesus could not have been executed on Shabbath. Unde: if the crucifiction took place on Saturday morning, and we allow one day for the judicial procedures, then the Last Supper must have taken place on Thursday night. Am I wrong? Anyway, it is true that the Passover Seder does include wine and bread-blessing, as any Jewish feast does, but then the feast goes on, and the lamb (nowadays chicken, for there is no Temple to fulfill all the prescribed ceremonies of blessing the food) plays crucial part in it. As well as the matza, though. The latter might serve a good explanation of Judas's theft. There is a custom of stealing the so called "afikoman" (a piece of matza), that is, at the beginning of the seder parents steal (hide) a piece of matza, and then later the youngest child has to find it. This piece is to be eaten th! > e ! > last one. They say, this piece is originally destined for Elias the prophet. > Judas is usually stealing fish (not bread!) although there may be no fish on the table, as I now see on the Central-European examples. Stealing IXTYS? > These Central-European LS's are full with curiosities like roasted pigs and unindentifiable animals looking rather like toads smashed. There can be found certain tendencies in those images: LS as a pure Eucharist in Presbyterium frescos and feast-like images in the naves; again Eucharists in the biblia Pauperum and Spec. Hum. Salv. (here sometimes also fish, which might mean that they were fasting. . .) but feast (without wine!) in Graduales, Rationales , Missals, etc. Closer to laics -- closer to reality? > > The shape of the bread eaten at the LS is also very different. They sometimes have round little bread looking like nowadays-Orthodox host, sometimes those wafer-like flat pieces and big round loafs (not really unleaven, as it seems) simultaneously, sometimes funny long rolls (perhaps, stuffed?), sometimes little white balls. . . No matza, though. > > Any ideas?, > Elena %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%