3-042-429 - Heritage Art/Heritage Images

Border with Abraham and Isaac; Prayer Book of Cardinal Albrecht of Brandenburg, about 1525-1530. Additional Info: Against the backdrop of a beautiful atmospheric landscape, Abraham, a sword tucked under his arm, urges his son Isaac to precede him up the mountain. In order to test Abraham's faith, God had ordered him to sacrifice his only son, an action stopped by an angel at the last moment. Medieval Christians often saw Isaac's sacrifice as an Old Testament prefiguration of the story of Christ, whose journey to Calvary appears in the facing miniature. Simon Bening underlined the parallel by showing Isaac in a position similar to Christ's, carrying on his shoulder the wood that will complete his sacrifice just as Christ carries his cross.