Autor: Małgorzata Martens-Czarnecka | Strony: 241–252
Streszczenie
In religious art the image of Christ as the Incarnation of Logos, the Son of God, the Child born unto Mary, the His figure embodied the most important dogma of Christianity. There are many representations of Christ in Nubian interior decoration of the religious buildings. He could be depicted either standing or seated in majesty on the throne. He could have His hands raised in the gesture of the orant. Numerous busts of Christ were enclosed in a form of medallion or mandorla, reminiscent of the imagines clipeatae, or at the intersection of the arms of the crosses. Christ was represented as a half-figure emerging from a cloud, protecting and crowning the main figure in the votive composition. He could also appear in glory, surrounded by the Living Creatures – scheme inspired by the theophanic visions of the Old Testament prophets – depicting in this way the image of the Maiestas Domini. Christ was represented too as the second Person of the Holy Trinity. Finally, He is also always present as the Child in paintings of the Mother of God and in the scenes of the Nativity. In the Nubian murals, Christ is always dressed in the robes of antiquity a chiton (a type of tunic with long, narrow sleeves) and a mantle in the form of a rectangular piece of fabric – himation. The colours of the robes are those traditionally used in the iconography of Christ, conveying the symbolism of royal power, dignity, wisdom and spirituality. Thus, the chiton is usually purple, whilst the himation may be either purple or white. In Nubian iconography Christ’s right hand is always raised in the benedictio graeca gesture and the left hand points at the Book of the Gospel. The head of Christ is almost always framed by a circular halo – a mark of holiness and a symbol of God’s glory, with a cross always inset within. In most cases, the arms of the cross are green – a symbol of eternal life, hope and spiritual awakening. The Greek letters О, Ω and Ν are seen on the cross. The face is framed by locks of shoulder-length hair, two strands lying on the forehead. The tips of the earlobes are visible at the sides of the head. Further features include a short, pointed beard. In Nativity scenes, or when held by the Virgin, the Christ Child is always depicted with the face of an adult. The image of Christ’s face in Nubian murals does not diverge then from the types prevalent in Byzantine art and all differences largely stem from the simplification of a generally accepted model.