Themes hierarchy
In the Genesis creation myth Adam & Eve were the first man and women.
The announcement by the angel Gabriel to the Virgin Mary, that she would conceive and become the mother of Jesus the Son of God.
The belief that the resurrected Christ was taken up into heaven some forty days after crucifixion.
The belief that the body of the Virgin Mary was taking up to heaven and reunited with her soul.
Application of water as a symbolic washing away of sin, as part of the ceremonial initiation into the Christian church.
Christ as s ruler of the universe. Normally he is in a mandorla and surrounded by other figures and objects.
A subject in Christian Art where the Virgin Mary is shown being crowned on arrival in heaven, or sat on a throne with a crown beside her son. Though the later depiction is not strictly a crowning it is treated as such here.
The creation story as told in Genesis.
The execution of Jesus, a critical aspect of Christian theology, leading the doctrine of salvation and atonement.
A bound Jesus Christ wearing the crown of thorns. Ecce Homo (behold the man) is the Latin phrase that Pontius Pilate when Christ was presented to the crowd just before the crucifixion.
The image has been popular in depictions of the Passion in western art particularly during the 15th to 17th centuries.
The manifestation of Christ to the Gentiles as represented by the Magi.
Mary, Joseph, and the infant Jesus' escape after a warning that King Herod intended to kill all the infants in the area.
One of the parables told by Jesus in Luke 10:30/33.
A depiction of Jesus as a shepherd that lays down his life for his flock.
An 8th century invention where Christ is supposed to have released the Righteous of the Old Testament along with Adam and Eve from Hell.
Images concerned with miraculous healing
Catholic doctrine that the Virgin Mary was conceived without sin. Although a popular belief for a number of centuries, it only became part of the dogma in the 19th century.
A missing Jesus is found by his parents in discussion with the temple elders.
Jesus welcomes children with love and teaches their value in God’s kingdom.
In Christian belief this is the final and eternal judgement by God of all nations at the end of history.
In Christian belief this was the final meal that Jesus shared with his disciples.
A representation of Mary with the infant Jesus.
The first of the miracles ascribed to Jesus, by St John, where he turned water into wine.
The infants that the bible says Herod had killed in and around Bethlehem as he feared that a newborn King would deprive him of his throne.
The events surrounding the actual birth of Christ. The Annunciation, and Epiphany are dealt with separately.
The Passion cycle refers to a series of artistic representations, commonly found in medieval and Renaissance painting, sculpture, stained glass, and manuscript illumination, that narrate the final episodes of Christ’s life.
In Christian art a scene where the Virgin Mary is holding the dead body of Jesus.
In the gospel of Luke, when Jesus is presented at the temple following Mary’s purification, a man called Simeon called him a Light to the World.
The Prodigal Son is a biblical parable illustrating themes of forgiveness, redemption, and unconditional love.
Lazarus the brother of Martha and Mary (of Magdalene) was brought back to life by Jesus four days after he had died.
Biblical story central to Christianity which tells of Jesus coming back to life after being executed by crucifixion at Golgotha.
Revelation is the last book of the New Testament, revealing the future events of the end times and the return of Jesus Christ.
Christ as Saviour of the World. Theme in Christian art where Christ is holding an orb or globe representing the world, and his right hand raised giving a blessing.
Images depicting the story of the Surmon on the Mount, including the miracle of feeding the five thousand.
A depiction of the ancestors of Christ starting from the father of King David, Jesse of Bethlehem.
The visit to Hebron by the Virgin Mary to St Elizabeth who was pregnant with John the Baptist.
Representation of Christ's miracle of turning water into wine.
In Christian theology the souls of the dead are weighed so as to judge them. This is based on the theory that sin is heavy and thus those that do not pass the test are destined for hell.