tres gradus fidelium in ecclesia
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Eleanor Goerss
Abstract
Starting in the late 12th century, pictorial representations of the seven-branched candelabrum occur frequently in manuscripts. Found almost exclusively together with Peter of PoitiersPeter of Poitiers’ Compendium historiae in genealogiae Christi, a diagrammatic rendering of salvation history, the Menorah appears as a full-page, iconic image. A short explanatory text interprets the candelabrum’s three levels of branches as three degrees of merit exemplified by three biblical figures. In this allegory, NoahNoah stands for the preachers, DanielDaniel for the continent, and JobJob for the righteous married (based on Ezekiel 14:12-23). The allegorised candelabrum, in presenting the tres gradus fidelium in ecclesia fuerunt (“three grades of the faithful that existed within Church”), provides a visual model of Christian society. Examining the phenomenon of the candelabrum in its context together with the Compendium historiae, this chapter addresses the history of an image, its aesthetics between the diagrammatic and the pictorial, and its implications for the visualisation of history.
Abstract
Starting in the late 12th century, pictorial representations of the seven-branched candelabrum occur frequently in manuscripts. Found almost exclusively together with Peter of PoitiersPeter of Poitiers’ Compendium historiae in genealogiae Christi, a diagrammatic rendering of salvation history, the Menorah appears as a full-page, iconic image. A short explanatory text interprets the candelabrum’s three levels of branches as three degrees of merit exemplified by three biblical figures. In this allegory, NoahNoah stands for the preachers, DanielDaniel for the continent, and JobJob for the righteous married (based on Ezekiel 14:12-23). The allegorised candelabrum, in presenting the tres gradus fidelium in ecclesia fuerunt (“three grades of the faithful that existed within Church”), provides a visual model of Christian society. Examining the phenomenon of the candelabrum in its context together with the Compendium historiae, this chapter addresses the history of an image, its aesthetics between the diagrammatic and the pictorial, and its implications for the visualisation of history.
Chapters in this book
- Frontmatter I
- List of Contents V
- Introduction 1
-
I. Tabernacle and Temple
- Das Schicksal des siebenarmigen Leuchters aus dem Jerusalemer Tempel im mittelalterlichen Rom 3
- Priest, Temple, Jewishness, Redemption? 37
- Articulating the geometricalia of Scripture 79
- Vasari and Giambullari on the Menorah, the Tabernacle, and Bezalel 97
- Die Menora in Raffaels Vertreibung des Heliodor und Garofalos Vertreibung der Wechsler aus dem Tempel 143
-
II. Image and Exegesis
- tres gradus fidelium in ecclesia 169
- Jewish and Christian Re-Imagining of the Seven-branched Lampstand in the Postilla litteralis of Nicholas of Lyra (d. 1349) 217
- Der siebenarmige Leuchter im Speculum humanae salvationis 243
- The Sanctuary’s Implements 271
- “A Secret Particularly Obscure” 307
-
III. Patronage and Memoria
- Aniane and Fulda 341
- Seven-branched Candelabra in Medieval England 365
- Marienwohlde oder Mölln? 415
- Siebenarmige Leuchter im 16. Jahrhundert 443
-
IV. Context and (Re-)Use
- Der siebenarmige Leuchter im Heiligtum von Mentorella (Vulturella) in Latium 475
- „Madonna del Albero, dandole tal cognome quella gran pianta“ 503
- Der siebenarmige Leuchter in der Marienkirche in Frankfurt an der Oder 543
- „den store liusestaken af bronz med dess Siu lampor“ 577
- Survivals and Revivals of the Menorah in Medieval and Early Modern European Synagogues 613
- Figures and Charts 653
Chapters in this book
- Frontmatter I
- List of Contents V
- Introduction 1
-
I. Tabernacle and Temple
- Das Schicksal des siebenarmigen Leuchters aus dem Jerusalemer Tempel im mittelalterlichen Rom 3
- Priest, Temple, Jewishness, Redemption? 37
- Articulating the geometricalia of Scripture 79
- Vasari and Giambullari on the Menorah, the Tabernacle, and Bezalel 97
- Die Menora in Raffaels Vertreibung des Heliodor und Garofalos Vertreibung der Wechsler aus dem Tempel 143
-
II. Image and Exegesis
- tres gradus fidelium in ecclesia 169
- Jewish and Christian Re-Imagining of the Seven-branched Lampstand in the Postilla litteralis of Nicholas of Lyra (d. 1349) 217
- Der siebenarmige Leuchter im Speculum humanae salvationis 243
- The Sanctuary’s Implements 271
- “A Secret Particularly Obscure” 307
-
III. Patronage and Memoria
- Aniane and Fulda 341
- Seven-branched Candelabra in Medieval England 365
- Marienwohlde oder Mölln? 415
- Siebenarmige Leuchter im 16. Jahrhundert 443
-
IV. Context and (Re-)Use
- Der siebenarmige Leuchter im Heiligtum von Mentorella (Vulturella) in Latium 475
- „Madonna del Albero, dandole tal cognome quella gran pianta“ 503
- Der siebenarmige Leuchter in der Marienkirche in Frankfurt an der Oder 543
- „den store liusestaken af bronz med dess Siu lampor“ 577
- Survivals and Revivals of the Menorah in Medieval and Early Modern European Synagogues 613
- Figures and Charts 653
