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medieval-religion: Scholarly discussions of medieval religion and culture The date for item "a" probably comes ultimately from Weitzmann but my immediate source was one of the learned Father John Watson's popularly oriented accounts of aspects of the monastery at St. Catherine hosted by touregypt.net, specifically this page: http://www.touregypt.net/featurestories/catherines2-7.htm at his "The Icons of the Monastery of St Catherine" <http://www.touregypt.net/featurestories/catherines2.htm>. Not an art historian, Watson is nonetheless a well known student of Coptic Christianity and his opinion on this matter is very likely to have been informed by scholarly reading. The well read Ahmed Shams has the same dating here: http://www.predella.it/archivio/index9632.html?option=com_content&view=article&id=165&catid=74&Itemid=100 That said, the seventh-century date could also be part of the transmit of information at the monastery itself. I've also seen this icon dated -- again without scholarly reference -- to the eighth or ninth century. In which case it would be even more unusual: encaustic icon painting is said to drop off dramatically after the later seventh century. My first thought upon seeing the lantern in item "z" was one of practicality in its design: it looks like a modified tankard and one can imagine a tinsmith turning out one or the other (tankard / lantern) according to the need of the moment. While we're here, at item "x" (a personal favorite not well photographed) for "late" please read "later" and for "power portion" please read "lower portion". I had written: "x) as portrayed in high relief by Antonio Rossellino in a late fifteenth-century relief (1475) in the Piccolomini chapel of the chiesa di Sant'Anna dei Lombardi, Naples: http://static.panoramio.com/photos/large/42398413.jpg Detail view (much better for the power portion of this composition): http://static.panoramio.com/photos/large/42398494.jpg" Best again, John ________________________________________ From: medieval-religion - Scholarly discussions of medieval religious culture <[log in to unmask]> on behalf of Genevra Kornbluth <[log in to unmask]> Sent: Friday, December 25, 2015 8:28 PM To: [log in to unmask] Subject: Re: [M-R] Feast - A Celebration for the Day (Dec. 25): the Nativity of Jesus Christ medieval-religion: Scholarly discussions of medieval religion and culture John, I find the lantern held by Joseph in 'z' particularly appealing! Does the date you give for 'a' come from Weitzmann, or where? Both the Virgin's body and the shepherd(?) in the hat (lower right) strike me as rather strange. Some additions: http://www.KornbluthPhoto.com/Nativity.html all best, Genevra On 12/25/2015 7:26 PM, John Dillon wrote: > medieval-religion: Scholarly discussions of medieval religion and culture > > A few period-pertinent images of the Nativity of Jesus: > > a) as depicted in a seventh-century encaustic icon in the Holy Monastery of the God-trodden Mount Sinai, St. Catherine (South Sinai governorate): > http://tinyurl.com/cf48lpe > > z) as portrayed by the workshop of Michael Wolgemut in a panel of the early sixteenth-century polychromed wooden principal altarpiece (completed, 1508) in the Stadtkirche St. Johannes und St. Martin in Schwabach: > http://tinyurl.com/nth3v7n > ********************************************************************** To join the list, send the message: subscribe medieval-religion YOUR NAME to: [log in to unmask] To send a message to the list, address it to: [log in to unmask] To leave the list, send the message: unsubscribe medieval-religion to: [log in to unmask] In order to report problems or to contact the list's owners, write to: [log in to unmask] For further information, visit our web site: http://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/medieval-religion