Leaf from the Trebizond Gospels: the Baptism of Christ

Description This illustration depicts the baptism of Christ. The Holy Spirit is shown descending over Christ in the form of a dove, while two angels wait to receive him when he comes out of the water. The vaguely outlined figure on the lower left is a personification of the river Jordan. This Gospel Book was probably made in Constantinople in the mid twelfth century and is remarkable for the fine execution and monumental quality of its full-page miniatures. The opening for the Gospel of Matthew is missing, but the other three Gospels are prefaced with a pair of miniatures each: the respective Evangelist on the left, and a scene from the Gospel story on the right. The combination of St. John with the Raising of Lazarus is one found only in this manuscript. The text was copied by two scribes with distinctly different hands.

Exhibitions

• Early Christian and Byzantine Art. Baltimore Museum of Art, Baltimore. 1947.
• The Glory of Byzantium. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York. 1997.
• Illuminating the Word: Gospel Books in the Middle Ages. The Walters Art Museum, Baltimore. 2004.

Provenance Owned by Pellikidis, Trabzon [1]. Acquired by Henry Walters, Baltimore [2]; by bequest to Walters Art Museum, 1931. [1] Seen there by M. Alpatov in the autumn of 1924 [2] Probably from Léon Gruel

Credit Acquired by Henry Walters