Posted by Dennis Mangan on Tue, 28 Jun 2005 14:34 | #

That should be “The Four Evangelists”, traditionally represented in the forms of a man, a lion, an eagle, and an ox.

Posted by Geoff Beck on Tue, 28 Jun 2005 14:53 | #

I was taught the term ‘Apostle’ applied only to Christ’s original 12 disciples. (I believe that exclude Paul, too).

So a man, a lion, an eagle, and an ox refer to the Apostles Matthew, Mark, Luke and John?

I really ought to know this.

Posted by stari_momak on Tue, 28 Jun 2005 19:29 | #

So a man, a lion, an eagle, and an ox refer to the Apostles Matthew, Mark, Luke and John?

I really ought to know this.

One of the great pleasures of ‘trivial’ knowledge like this is the layers of history it opens up. Having spent a great deal of time in the eastern Mediterranean in the late 90’s, I would always look around for the Lion’s heads, esp. winged Lion’s heads. When I found one in a (esp. coastal) town or city, I would know the Venetians had been their—most likely as part of the long struggle with the Ottomans. You see, St. Mark is the patron saint of Venice (think Piaza di San Marco), and they carried him and represented him wherever they went. It even spills over into the commericial sector, check out http://www.generali.com , the italian insurance giant.

This is how identities are forged and maintained.

Posted by John S Bolton on Tue, 28 Jun 2005 21:17 | #

Looking at the amazing detail of the illuminations of that period, when there was such poverty and illiteracy, and Western culture was scarcely distinguishable from Oriental ones, in terms of its classical distinctiveness, indicates that the leftist insistence on the importance of money or education is propaganda. If you had a more intricate page, showing the planfulness also, and blown up to show the detail, that would be even more instructive. Consider how short the lives of such generations were; and how backward their political development, and how little culture could penetrate the darkness of the dark age.