Reply To: Graven Images

[Gabe]

Especially going through the Jewish section, the exhibit was full of holy sites and temples. This avoids the ‘graven images’ problem because the emphasis is on the location instead of the image. It is contrasted against Greek and Roman art which is full of images of deities and the myths that surround them. In the case of the Temple of Solomon, the Holiest of Holies was kept out of view, separated from the larger temple by a veil. This is ironically a concretization of the idea that God is beyond the image of God, and one ought not worship the image. A lot of the Christian artwork portrays Saints and Jesus, actual historical figures, and artwork that tells their story. I wonder if this anticipates the tendency of later ‘Western Christian’ civilization to stick to the facts.