Cleveland Museum of Art

Cutting from an Antiphonary: Initial A[spiciens a longe]: The Tree of Jesse

Date

c. 1115–1125

Medium

ink, tempera, and gold on vellum

Culture

Germany, Meuse Valley, 12th century

Department

Medieval Art

Institution

Cleveland Museum of Art

This complex initial "A" is formed of meandering plant tendrils, neatly and symmetrically placed at the center of a succession of square frames to which the letter is securely attached above and below. The whole forms a Tree of Jesse showing Christ's ancestors beginning with King David (bottom). The text would have begun, "Long have I been watching...." These are the words of Isaiah, who foresaw the coming of Christ. Isaiah's prophecies are the basis for the representations of the Tree of Jesse, often seen in medieval art.

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