Medieval Representation of the Gospels

 Medieval Representation of the Gospels: Charlie Green

In medieval Europe, scripture held a profoundly influential position within society. The perception of scripture during this era was shaped by a combination of religious devotion, intellectual inquiry, and cultural traditions. The Bible was viewed as divine revelation, containing timeless truths and moral guidance directly communicated by God. The interpretation and understanding of scripture were predominantly guided by the authority of the Church, emphasizing the sacredness and infallibility of the text. 

This reverence for knowledge, especially for sacred revelation is embodied in how the Bible was treated in its artistic rendering. Each page was treated with deserving meticulous care. The medieval period offers a tradition of binding the Bible’s pages with ornate covers that speak to the sacred wisdom that is revealed once the cover is lifted. 

A prominent symbol in Biblical illuminated manuscripts and book covers is the “Tetramorph”, or the winged creatures observed in both Ezekiel 1 and Revelation 4. A common theological interpretation of these creatures is that they correspond to the four authors of the Gospels in the New Testament: Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. Although the Bible does not explicitly say the Tetramorph represents the Gospels, this interpretation is hammered into the symbolism of centuries of medieval sacred art. Medieval illuminated manuscripts and book covers repeatedly attempt to emphasize the sacredness of scripture, create a visual association between the Tetramorph and four Gospel writers, and create visual cohesion between scripture and the divine throughout the entire Bible.

Book Cover, with Icon of the Crucifixion. Panel: Byzantine (Constantinople), second half of 10th century. Ivory, with traces of gilding; 53/8 x 35/8 in. (13.7 x 9.1 cm). Setting: Spanish (Aragon, Jaca), before 1085. Gilded silver, with pseudo filigree, glass, crystal, and sapphire, over wood core; lol/2 x 71/2 in. (26.7 x 19.1 cm). 

This Byzantine book cover is inlaid with ivory, gold, and precious stones. The value and rarity of these mediums show the artist’s reverence towards scripture, giving literal and figurative weight to the text. The central image depicts Christ on the cross surrounded by four figures, a man and woman adorned with halos and the torsos of two winged angels. The man on the bottom right bears the scriptures in his arm. We can immediately assume the man holding the scriptures is one of the gospel writers as he is present at Christ’s crucifixion, has a halo indicating his status as an apostle, and the fact he holds the very scriptures that lay beyond the book’s cover. Although the Gospel writer is not represented through the Tetramorph, this image is consistent with the medieval motif of representing the Gospel writers through holding a book.

Plaque with the Crucifixion and the Stabbing of Hades Byzantine, 10th c.

Ivory; 5 x 32 in. (12.7 x 8.9 cm.)

Gift of J. Pierpont Morgan, 1917(17.190.44)

This ivory plaque is similar to the Byzantine book cover (both are ivory carvings from the 10th century). Both depict Christ on the cross with two figures at his sides (Mary and John the Baptist) and two angels above. Notably, both representations of the angels only depict their torsos. This plaque deviates from the Byzantine book cover in the area beneath Christ, where Roman soldiers divide his garments. Beneath them is Hades, stabbing himself to represent Christ’s defeat of sin and death through the Cross. The motif is clear, with Christ surrounded by four figures. This repeated use of four can also be connected to Biblical numerology, as four is considered a holy number in both Jewish and Christian traditions. 

Enamel, mid-twelfth century. Meuse School. Upper surface of portable altar (without outer border). Augsburg, Städtische Kunstsammlungen.

Christ on the Cross, Ecclesia and Synagogue, four Virtues (Fortitude, Justice, Temperance, Prudence).

This portable altar depicts Christ surrounded by four virtues. Christ is in the center enclosed in a circular frame with two women representing the Church and Synagogue. Here the virtues represent Fortitude, Justice, Temperance, and Prudence, instead of representing the Gospel writers. However, this symbolism is consistent with the motif of “four” and the broader image of Christ surrounded by four figures. Each virtue holds an object corresponding to their respective virtues, which connects to the medieval habit of figures being denoted by what they hold (such as holding scripture indicating a Gospel writer). 

Master Hugo (English, active ca. 1125-52). Ezekiel's Vision of God, from the Bury Bible, vol. 3. Abbey of Bury Saint Edmunds, ca. 1135. Tempera on parchment; folio 201/4 x 14 in. (51.4 x 35.5 cm). Corpus Christi College, Cambridge

This page from an English illuminated manuscript yet again shows Christ in the center surrounded by four figures, with a fifth figure observing from below. It is also an example of the Tetramorph in medieval art. Each figure is enclosed in a round frame. The image depicts Ezekiel’s vision in Ezekiel 1:10 “As for the likeness of their faces, they four had the face of a man, and the face of a lion, on the right side: and they four had the face of an ox on the left side; they four also had the face of an eagle.” Christ appears in the center holding the Bible or his “word”. The four creatures surrounding Christ correspond to the creatures in Ezekiel’s vision, as Ezekial watches, writing what he sees on a scroll beneath Christ’s feet. The four figures all hold scripture, the figure with the face of a man holding a book and the rest scrolls. This illustration of Ezekial’s account shows the artist's desire to marry the message of the Hebrew Bible with the four Gospels of the New Testament, as even in his vision, they hold the pages of sacred revelation.

Unknown, Plaque with Agnus Dei on a Cross between Emblems of the Four Evangelists, 1000-1050 C.E.

Ivory, 9 1/4 x 5 3/8 x 3/8 in.

This is a rectangular ivory relief sculpture from the 11th century known to be from southern Italy. It depicts Christ in the form of “Agnus Dei” or Lamb of God enclosed in a circle. Surrounding it are the four creatures from Revelation 4:7 “And the first beast was like a lion, and the second beast like a calf, and the third beast had a face as a man, and the fourth beast was like a flying eagle.” Similar to the angels in previously observed ivory carvings, only the creatures’ torsos are shown. More importantly, each creature holds a book, indicating that they also represent the four Gospel writers. 

Reliquary Châsse

Northern Spanish or southern French, late 11th c. Copper gilt and champlevé enamel;

48 x 7 x 3% in. (12.4 x 19.1 x 7.9 cm.)

Gift of J. Pierpont Morgan, 1917 (17.190.685-87, 695,710,711)

This reliquary châsse shows a combination of the commonly repeated motifs in all of the objects seen thus far. The front of the châsse depicts Christ surrounded by four figures: A man and a woman at his side and two angels above. The design on the back mirrors the four figures, however, these four figures are the creatures described in Ezekiel 1 and Revelation 4. Each figure carries either a scroll or a book. The symbolism within the number 4 is emphasized through the layout of the figures on both the front and back of the object.

This visual association between the Tetramorph and the Gospels, although not explicitly stated in the Bible, became a central motif in medieval sacred art. The prevalence of these symbols repeated over and over again show how artists during the medieval period sought to use art to bring clarity and continuity between old and new testaments, to bring complex theological concepts to life (communicating to a population that was largely illiterate), and underscore the sanctity of scripture. 

Works Cited

Koester, Craig R., ed. The Oxford Handbook of the Book of Revelation. New York, NY: Oxford University Press, 2020.

Schiller, Gertrud. Iconography of Christian Art. Translated by Janet Seligman. First American ed. Greenwich, Connecticut: New York Graphic Society, 1971. 

Shepard, Mary B. Europe in the Middle Ages, edited by Charles T. Little, and Timothy B. Husband. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1987. p. 44, pl. 35.

Wixom, William D., and Margaret Lawson. "Picturing the Apocalypse: Illustrated Leaves from a Medieval Spanish Manuscript." The Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin, n.s., 59, no. 3 (Winter 2002). p. 5, fig. 1.