Nov 20, 2007
Dec 1, 2005

The Bible of the Poor (Biblia Pauperum), Pharaoh's Army Drowned in the Red Sea; Baptism of Christ; and Moses' Spies Returning with Grapes from Canaan Esau Selling Jacob his Birthright; Temptation of Christ; and Temptation of Adam and Eve

Biblia Pauperum

The Bible of the Poor (Biblia Pauperum), Pharaoh's Army Drowned in the Red Sea; Baptism of Christ; and Moses' Spies Returning with Grapes from Canaan Esau Selling Jacob his Birthright; Temptation of Christ; and Temptation of Adam and Eve

c. 1465

Woodcut, hand colored with watercolor

Support: Cream(3) laid paper

Sheet: 26.9 x 38.8 cm (10 9/16 x 15 1/4 in.)

John L. Severance Fund 1986.91

Edition: probably Schreiber III or IV

Location

Did you know?

This sheet was hand-colored with a limited palette, so that black, for example, plays dual roles of the color of hair, and the shadow on a building.

Description

This hand-colored leaf is from the blockbook Biblia Pauperum (Bible of the Poor), which served as an educational handbook for laymen and clerics. Blockbooks, in which images and text were carved in relief from a single block of wood, are the earliest form of printed text in Europe. On each page, two Old Testament episodes flank a New Testament scene, implying a connection between the stories. At left is Christ’s baptism between the Pharaoh’s drowned army and spies returning from Canaan. To the right is Christ’s temptation bordered by Esau selling his birthright to Jacob and the temptation of Adam and Eve.

See also
Collection: 
PR - Woodcut
Department: 
Prints
Type of artwork: 
Print

Contact us

The information about this object, including provenance, may not be currently accurate. If you notice a mistake or have additional information about this object, please email collectionsdata@clevelandart.org.

To request more information about this object, study images, or bibliography, contact the Ingalls Library Reference Desk.

All images and data available through Open Access can be downloaded for free. For images not available through Open Access, a detail image, or any image with a color bar, request a digital file from Image Services.