Getty Museum

Pentecost

Date

about 1240–1250

Medium

Tempera colors, gold leaf, and silver leaf

Culture

German

Department

Manuscripts

Institution

Getty Museum

On the Jewish holiday of Pentecost (the Feast of Weeks), the Holy Spirit descended on the assembled apostles of Christ, enabling them to speak in different tongues and so to preach to all peoples. The Holy Spirit is shown here as a haloed dove, with rays extended toward the apostles' heads. A flame appears on the head of each apostle, evoking the biblical text that describes "tongues like fire" descending on them. The illuminator presented the apostles in a building, though the biblical text describes a house. This miniature of Pentecost, along with that of David and Joel on the facing page, prefaces Psalm 101 and marks the third major division of the psalms in this psalter.

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