ABRAHAM AND ISAAC

Abraham welcome the Mysterious Visitors (God), They Tell Him that His Aged Wife Sarah Will Bear a Long-Sought Son, At God's Command Abraham Attempts to Sacrifice Isaac

Commentary: The story of Abraham (Hebrew name meaning ancestor of a multitude), patriarch of the Jewish people, is one of unexpected joy in old age; the birth of Isaac to his aged wife Sarah. His subsequent utter faithfulness to God is shown in his willingness to obey God's command to sacrifice Isaac (see Hebrews 11.17 & 13.2, James 2.21-22), the obedient father's son (in the Koran, Ishmael, in a dream -- see The Rangers 102-107). The test hints at the ancient rejection of human sacrifice as a legitimate rite. The church fathers saw Isaac as prototype of the crucified Christ, saved by God. Abraham's older son, Ishmael, by Sarah's Egyptian servant Hagar, is regarded in Islam as the father of the Arab people, just as Isaac's son Jacob is seen as Israel, father of the Jewish tribes. The three strangers were depicted in medieval art as "angels" (see Hebrews 13.2), and later became symbolic of the Holy Trinity.

Composition: The tall conifer-like grove of trees helps to separate the two scenes. The trees echo the poses of the angels, while the more oak-like tree near Sarah's tent may represent her belated fertility. In contrast, the rocky outcrops of the mountain intensify the emotion of the sacrificial scene, while the flowing spring harmonizes with the relaxed poses of the servants waiting below.

HANNAH? (statuette)
A pensive, short, older woman stands in a full robe. The long-barren mother of Samuel gave her son to the Lord, as long-barren Sarah's son Isaac was offered to the Lord (1 Samuel 1.10-2.10) in the adjacent panel. Another possible identification is Sampson's mother, also long-barren.

SAMPSON (statuette)
Based on a classic Zeus figure, the naked bearded hero holds the ass's jawbone with which he slew an enemy horde, and grasps the pillar of the Philistine temple that he pulled down (Judges 15.15-16, 16.25-30). Like Isaac in the adjacent panel, he was the son of a long-barren mother and a willing sacrifice to God. The figure is among the first nude sculptures

MAIDEN WITH TURBAN (head)
A young long-haired woman (the young Sarah?) gazes outward under a wide turban. Might the head represent Ghiberti's mother?

YOUTH (head)
A fleshy-cheeked short-haired boy, possibly Benjamin, is in classic dress.