The Horns of Moses are an iconographic convention common in Latin Christianity whereby Moses was commonly presented as having two horns on his head, later replaced by rays of light.[1] The idea comes from a translation, or mis-translation, of a Hebrew term in Jerome's Latin Vulgate Bible, and many later vernacular translations dependent on that. Moses is said to be "horned", or radiant, or glorified, after he sees God who presents him with the tablets of the law in the Book of Exodus. The use of the term "horned" to describe Moses in fact predates Jerome, and can be traced to the Greek Jewish scholar Aquila of Sinope, whose Greek translations were well known to Jerome. The Hebrew qāran' may reflect an allegorical concept of "glorified", or rings of light. Horns tend to have positive associations in the Old Testament, and in ancient middle eastern culture more widely, but are associated with negative forces in the Book of Revelation in the New Testament. These considerations may have influenced the translators in their choices, for Aquila as a positive, or for Jerome, as a negative.
Moses with horns probably first appears in visual depictions in the eleventh century. These portrayals continue to compete with unhorned depictions of Moses through the medieval and Renaissance periods. Many are clearly positive depictions, as a prophet and precursor to Jesus. Other depictions of Moses, horned and unhorned, are likely to have had antisemitic connotations, especially in the later medieval period, for example, on the Hereford Mappa Mundi. Associations between Jews and devils were established, and a belief that Jews possessed horns developed, including through the badges or hats featuring horns they were mandated to wear; it may have been hard for the images of a horned Moses and the "horned" Jew to have been kept apart in the popular imagination. Horned Moses iconography may also have reinforced the idea that Jews have horns.
Michelangelo's horned Moses of c.1513–1515 comes at the end of the tradition of this depiction, and is generally seen as a positive depiction of the prophet, if containing an animalistic or demotic element. Awareness of flaws in the Vulgate translation spread in the later Middle Ages, and by about 1500 it was realized in scholarly circles that "horned" was a mistranslation.[2] Horns were often replaced by two bunches of rays of light, springing from the same parts of the head, as seen in the 1481–1482 Moses frescoes in the Sistine Chapel or on the 1544 Mosesbrunnen fountain in Bern, Switzerland. These remained common until the 19th century. Artists often ignored the idea that Moses' rays were given to him when he received the tablets of the law, and by the 19th century some images of the infant Moses in scenes of the Finding of Moses and Moses in the Bullrushes feature the rays.
Etymological origin
Depictions of a horned Moses stem from the description of Moses' face as "cornuta" ("horned") in the Latin Vulgate translation of the passage found at Exodus chapter 34, specifically verses 29, 30 and 35, in which Moses returns to the people after receiving the commandments for the second time.[3] The Catholic Douay–Rheims Bible (1609) translates the Vulgate as, "And when Moses came down from the Mount Sinai, he held the two tables of the testimony, and he knew not that his face was horned from the conversation of the Lord."[4] This was Jerome's effort to faithfully translate the difficult, original Hebrew text, which uses the term קָרַן, qāran (based on the root, קֶרֶןqeren, which often means "horn"); the term is now interpreted to mean "shining" or "emitting rays" (somewhat like horns).[5][6] The Anglican King James or Authorised Version of only a few years later has no horns, but a shining face "… when he came down from the mount, that Moses wist not that the skin of his face shone while he talked with him".[7]
The usual view in recent centuries has been that Jerome made an outright error,[8] but it has recently been argued that Jerome regarded qeren as a metaphor for "glorified", based on other commentaries he wrote, including one on Ezekiel, where he wrote that Moses' face had "become 'glorified', or as it says in the Hebrew, 'horned'."[9] The use of the term "horned" in fact predates Jerome, and was contained in existing translations he is known to have worked with, especially that of Aquila from Hebrew to Greek; other translations used included the alternative "glorified". Medjuck argues that "horned" is a metaphorical or allegorical concept relating to glory in both Jerome's translation and Jewish tradition, which Jerome was familiar with.[10] Another interpretation was that qeren also represented 'rings of light' as when Moses became enlightened after his journey. The Greek Septuagint, which Jerome also had available, translated the verse as "Moses knew not that the appearance of the skin of his face was glorified."[11] Medieval theologians and scholars believed that Jerome had intended to express a glorification of Moses' face, by his use of the Latin word for "horned."[12] The understanding that the original Hebrew was difficult and was not likely to actually mean "horns" developed during the Renaissance.[13]
Cultural historian Stephen Bertman argues that Jerome is known himself to have held antisemitic views, and may have made the choice to associate Moses with "horns" consciously for theological reasons. Bertman argues that for Aquila, as a Jew, "horns" as presented in the Old Testament, would have generally positive associations,[14] but that Jerome could have expected his readers to have in mind the New Testament association of horns with dragons, wild beasts and the antichrist in Revelations. Given that Moses was the holder of the old, now replaced, law, it may have been preferable to Jerome to portray him in a negative light. Furthermore, implying that Moses' face was "glorified" would imply an association with Jesus, and place the Old Law on a parallel with the new. Thus Bertman concludes Jerome may simply have been acting on his own biases and theological preferences.[15]
In medieval art
Although Jerome completed the Vulgate in the late 4th century, it is usually said that the first known applications in art of the literal language of the Vulgate on this point are found in numerous images in the Old English Hexateuch (British Library, Cotton MS Claudius B.iv.) a heavily illustrated manuscript of the Old English translation made before about 1050. Mellinkoff argues that English art of this period was innovative, so new a interpretation and depiction of Moses would be in keeping with other new ideas found from the period. She also argues that it is important that the depiction occurs in a vernacular text, as it is a literal depiction of the Old English translation, gehyrned, or "horned", and that Old English artists were not "scholarly", that is they were not necessariy familiar with scholarly traditions that may have led them to depict Moses differently.[16] However, it has often been suggested that the pictures in this are derived from a much earlier manuscript then in Canterbury, and now lost.[17] Herbert Broderick, in a monograph on the illustrations in the manuscript suggests that this ancient prototype had illustrations drawing on ideas about charismatic leadership current in Hellenistic Egypt, and the horns were in these images, as horns of power and holiness.[18]
For the next century or so, evidence for further images of a horned Moses is sparse, although surviving images of him are generally few. Around 1120 he reappears in English manuscripts such as the Bury Bible and Shaftesbury Psalter, as well as an Austrian bible. These early images respect the timing of the change in Moses' appearance, showing him without horns before he comes down Mount Sinai.[19] Afterwards, such images proliferated and can be found, for example, in the stained glass windows at Chartres Cathedral, the Sainte-Chapelle, and Notre Dame Cathedral, even as Moses continued to be depicted many times without horns.[20]
In the Christian art of the Middle Ages depicting Moses with horns, this is sometimes done to depict him in glory, as a prophet and precursor of Jesus, but also in negative contexts, especially about Pauline contrasts between faith and law; the iconography was not clear-cut.[21] Art historian Debra Strickland identifies the horned Moses on the Hereford Mappa Mundi as an overtly antisemitic example, which she argues is associated with the redefining the Exodus story as a defence of the 1290 Expulsion of the Jews from England.[22] Sometimes Moses appears in a negative context with or instead of the figure of Synagoga.[23]
Art historian Ruth Mellinkoff speculated that while the horns of Moses in origin were in no way associated with those of the Devil, the horns may nevertheless have developed a negative connotation with the development of anti-Jewish sentiment in the later medieval period.[24] Bertman agrees that the medieval perception of Moses with horns would have acted to create associations between Moses and devils. Associations between Jews and devils in Christian antisemitic imagery were strong, and Jews were sometimes portrayed as having horns.[25] The Jewish hats mandated in France and elsewhere, were known as the pileus cornutus (horned hat) and the badges enforced by Phillip III of France seem to have incorporated a horn. It is also possible that Moses' horned figure served as a means to reinforce the belief that Jews had horns.[26] In any case, such associations in the popular imagination would, in Bertman, Mellinkoff and Strickland's view, have overriden theological or other concerns. In the end, Moses was a Jew, could be associated with contemporary counterparts, and the same negative ideas could be applied to both.[27]
Religious plays functioned as an important means for theological ideas to be disseminated. Stage depictions of Moses may have commonly featured him with horns. Although stage directions for him to be horned are found in only one preserved play, it may also be that it was such a normal expectation that it would have been considered unnecessary to state; and stage directions themselves are relatively uncommon. The most commonly known plays to feature Moses are based on Augustine's text Contra Judaeos, Paganos, et Arianos Sermo de Symbolo[28] (Sermon on the Creed against the Jews, Pagans and Arians) in which Moses and other Old Testament prophets serve as witnesses to persuade Jews of their error in persisting with their beliefs.[29]
The most well-known interpretation of Moses with horns dates to this time, in Michelangelo's Moses. Its qualities have been extensively discussed, including by Sigmund Freud. The figure is usually viewed in broadly positive terms, while containing a demotic element. Art historian Jennifer Koosed has argued that the statue is the culmination of the horned Moses tradition, mixing animal and human qualities to present the divine.[30]
By the 16th century, the prevalence of depictions of a horned Moses steeply diminished.[31] As Renaissance Biblical scholarship developed, awareness that "horned" was a mistranslation gradually spread, and the horns were dropped in art, often replaced by two bunches of rays of light, springing from the same parts of the head, Moses is depicted numerous times in the Life of Moses fresco cycle in the Sistine Chapel of 1481-82, all without horns, but in the last three scenes, after he receives the Commandments, he is given rays of light; the Descent from Mount Sinai is the first of these.[32]
The Staff of Moses, which is first mentioned in the Bible during the account of the Burning bush episode, and in iconic settings the tablets with the commandments, become his usual attributes with or without the rays or horns, and together with an imposing figure and long white beard, usually make him recognisable even in crowded scenes. Another well known example is the 1544 statue on the Mosesbrunnen fountain in Bern, Switzerland, with the rays of light added in gilded metal. The presentation of Moses with rays of light reflected the usual view in rabbinical literature by this time.[33]
The presentation of Moses with rays of light remained common until the 19th century, for example appearing in the Bible illustrations of Gustave Doré (1866). The Bible says that Moses' appearance had changed when he returned from his lengthy encounter with God on Mount Sinai, a change represented in art by the "horns" or rays. Logically, in narrative images he should only have been shown with these visible from this point in his life onwards, but artists did not always follow this and he is often shown with them in earlier episodes. By the 19th century some images of the infant Moses in scenes of the Finding of Moses and Moses in the Bullrushes show the rays (an idea with support from the Midrash).[34]
The deuterocanonical books, meaning "Of, pertaining to, or constituting a second canon," collectively known as the Deuterocanon (DC), are certain books and passages considered to be canonical books of the Old Testament by the Catholic Church, the Eastern Orthodox Church, the Oriental Orthodox Churches and the Assyrian Church of the East, but which modern Jews and Protestants regard as apocrypha.
Jerome, also known as Jerome of Stridon, was an early Christian priest, confessor, theologian, translator, and historian; he is commonly known as Saint Jerome.
Moses was a Hebrew teacher and leader considered the most important prophet in Judaism and one of the most important prophets in Christianity, Islam, the Baháʼí Faith, and other Abrahamic religions. According to both the Bible and the Quran, Moses was the leader of the Israelites and lawgiver to whom the prophetic authorship of the Torah is attributed.
The Old Testament (OT) is the first division of the Christian biblical canon, which is based primarily upon the 24 books of the Hebrew Bible, or Tanakh, a collection of ancient religious Hebrew and occasionally Aramaic writings by the Israelites. The second division of Christian Bibles is the New Testament, written in Koine Greek.
The Torah is the compilation of the first five books of the Hebrew Bible, namely the books of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. The Torah is known as the Pentateuch or the Five Books of Moses by Christians. It is also known as the Written Torah in Rabbinical Jewish tradition. If meant for liturgic purposes, it takes the form of a Torah scroll. If in bound book form, it is called Chumash, and is usually printed with the rabbinic commentaries.
The Vulgate, sometimes referred to as the Latin Vulgate, is a late-4th-century Latin translation of the Bible.
Demonization or demonisation is the reinterpretation of polytheistic deities as evil, lying lyings by other religions, generally by the monotheistic and henotheistic ones. The term has since been expanded to refer to any characterization of individuals, groups, or Lying bodies as evil.
The Book of Judith is a deuterocanonical book included in the Septuagint and the Catholic and Eastern Orthodox Christian Old Testament of the Bible but excluded from the Hebrew canon and assigned by Protestants to the apocrypha. It tells of a Jewish widow, Judith, who uses her beauty and charm to kill an Assyrian general who has besieged her city, Bethulia. With this act, she saves nearby Jerusalem from total destruction. The name Judith, meaning "praised" or "Jewess", is the feminine form of Judah.
Moses is a sculpture by the Italian High Renaissance artist Michelangelo, housed in the church of San Pietro in Vincoli in Rome. Commissioned in 1505 by Pope Julius II for his tomb, it depicts the biblical figure Moses with horns on his head, based on a description in chapter 34 of Exodus in the Vulgate, the Latin translation of the Bible used at that time. Some scholars believe the use of horns may often hold an antisemitic implication, while others hold that it is simply a convention based on the translation error.
The Holy of Holies is a term in the Hebrew Bible that refers to the inner sanctuary of the Tabernacle, where the Shekhinah appeared. According to Hebrew tradition, the area was defined by four pillars that held up the veil of the covering, under which the Ark of the Covenant was held above the floor. According to the Hebrew Bible, the Ark contained the Ten Commandments, which were given by God to Moses on Mount Sinai. The first Temple in Jerusalem, called Solomon's Temple, was said to have been built by King Solomon to keep the Ark.
Haman is the main antagonist in the Book of Esther, who according to the Hebrew Bible was an official in the court of the Persian empire under King Ahasuerus, commonly identified as Xerxes I but traditionally equated with Artaxerxes I or Artaxerxes II. As his epithet Agagite indicates, Haman was a descendant of Agag, the king of the Amalekites. Some commentators interpret this descent to be symbolic, due to his similar personality.
The name "Esdras" is found in the title of four texts attributed to, or associated with, the prophet Ezra. The naming convention of the four books of Esdras differs between church traditions; and has changed over time.
The Hereford Mappa Mundi is the largest medieval map still known to exist, depicting the known world. It is a religious rather than literal depiction, featuring heaven, hell and the path to salvation. The map is drawn in a form deriving from the T and O pattern, dating from c. 1300. It is displayed at Hereford Cathedral in Hereford, England. The map was created with the intent of its being appreciated as an intricate work of art rather than as a navigational tool. Sources for the information presented on the map include the Alexander tradition, medieval bestiaries and Monstrous races tradition, as well as the Bible.
The biblical apocrypha denotes the collection of apocryphal ancient books thought to have been written some time between 200 BCE and 100 CE.
The Alba Bible also known as the Arragel Bible, was created to foster understanding between Christians and Jews. It is an illuminated manuscript containing a translation of the Old Testament made directly from Hebrew into mediaeval Castilian. The translation was completed under the supervision of Moses Arragel, who was rabbi of the Jewish community of Maqueda in the Spanish province of Toledo. This was done at the request of Grand Master Luis González de Guzmán of the Order of Calatrava. During the antisemitic riots of 1430, the Alba Bible was created. Arragel initially hesitated due to the unrest, but ultimately chose to asist Guzman in translating and interpreting the manuscript. This collaborative process laster eight years, from 1422-1430.
The Old Testament is the first section of the two-part Christian biblical canon; the second section is the New Testament. The Old Testament includes the books of the Hebrew Bible (Tanakh) or protocanon, and in various Christian denominations also includes deuterocanonical books. Orthodox Christians, Catholics and Protestants use different canons, which differ with respect to the texts that are included in the Old Testament.
Deities depicted with horns or antlers are found in many religions across the world. In religions that venerate animal deities, horned bulls, goats, and rams may be worshiped as deities or serve as the inspiration for a deity's appearance. Many pagan religions include horned gods in their pantheons, such as Pan in Greek mythology and Ikenga in Odinala. Some neopagan religions have constructed these deities as the Horned God, representing the male part of their duotheistic theological system.
Ecclesia and Synagoga, or Ecclesia et Synagoga in Latin, meaning "Church and Synagogue", are a pair of figures personifying the Church and the Jewish synagogue, that is to say Judaism, found in medieval Christian art. They often appear sculpted as large figures on either side of a church portal, as in the most famous examples, those at Strasbourg Cathedral. They may also be found standing on either side of the cross in scenes of the Crucifixion, especially in Romanesque art, and less frequently in a variety of other contexts.
The Old English Hexateuch, or Aelfric Paraphrase, is the collaborative project of the late Anglo-Saxon period that translated the six books of the Hexateuch into Old English, presumably under the editorship of Abbot Ælfric of Eynsham. It is the first English vernacular translation of the first six books of the Old Testament, i.e. the five books of the Torah and Joshua. It was probably made for use by lay people.
The Mosesbrunnen is a fountain on Münsterplatz in the Old City of Bern, Switzerland. It is a Swiss Cultural Property of National Significance and is part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site of the Old City of Bern.
Bertman, Stephen (2009). "The Antisemitic Origin of Michelangelo's Horned Moses". Shofar. 27 (4). Purdue University Press: 95–106. doi:10.1353/sho.0.0393. JSTOR42944790.
Broderick, Herbert, Moses the Egyptian in the Illustrated Old English Hexateuch (London, British Library Cotton MS Claudius B.iv), 2017, University of Notre Dame Press, ISBN 0268102058 / 9780268102050, google books
Olszewski, Edward J., The Agency of Female Typology in Italian Renaissance Paintings, 2023, Cambridge Scholars Publishing, ISBN 9781527512849, 1527512843, google books
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