About Dr. Reiner

My name is Anne Reiner and I am the director of the Journalism Department at the Archeological Society of Geneva College. I have been working with this program for the past two and a half years and feel as though I have made many advances in my field. It is my duty to keep the public updated on the progress of our archeological expeditions and communicate the type of artifacts that we find.  Each site we come to is unique in its own way and deserves to be made public to those who may never be able to see it for themselves. I love the work that I do and hope that I have been able to learn just as much as my readers, if not more. 

Dome of the Pentecost

Time Period: 11^th and 12^th Centuries

Artist: Unknown

Location: Venice, Italy

Medium: Mosaic

Dimensions: Unknown

“When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place. And suddenly there came from heaven a noise like a violent rushing wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. And there appeared to them tongues as of fire distributing themselves, and they rested on each one of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit was giving them utterance.”  ~ Acts 2: 1-4

Situated on the ceiling of the San Marco Chapel in Venice, Italy the Dome of the Pentecost is an amazing sight. It depicts the tongues of fire coming from Jesus Christ to the twelve disciples. However, what perhaps makes this even more amazing is the fact that it is coated in gold, which accounts for the shine. Each design is made up of thousands of tiny blocks of many different colors. They are designed very intricately so that each color works together to form an image. It is a grueling task for any mosaic, but for this one and those around it must have been especially difficult because they are on the ceiling about forty yards above the floor.

The images which are created in this mosaic are that of Jesus in the very center, the king and savior of all. Proceeding forth from Jesus are twelve silver lines portraying the Holy Spirit descending from heaven to enter the minds of the apostles. Just above the heads of each apostle there is a red line which portrays the tongues of fire which were seen above their heads on the day of Pentecost. There is also a dove in the center which is a symbol of the Holy Spirit.

The placement of this mosaic is also very interesting to me. It is on the ceiling just as you walk through the door and serves as a reminder of the Holy Spirit’s presence in the church and in its members. Therefore, as the people walked into the service they were washed, metaphorically, with the Holy Spirit as they enter into the service. It is a great reminder of the Spirit’s influence in the church and in our individual lives.

Also, the fact that the mosaic is on the ceiling, as opposed to on the wall or somewhere else, is very important. It gives a wonderful feeling of the relationship between heaven and earth; Jesus is in heaven with the rest of the saints above the congregation which is on earth and because the shape of the mosaic is a dome then the lines portraying the Holy Spirit are coming down the side of the dome which gives it the effect of coming down from Heaven to meet the people. In a way it makes the story come alive for the person every time they come into the chapel; helping to keep the message of Pentecost alive as long as San Marco is around. 

Rose Window

Artist: Unknown

Year: Unknown

Location: Saint Chapel, Paris, France

Medium: Glass, Metallic Salt

Dimensions: Unknown

“And behold, I am coming quickly. Blessed is he who heeds the words of this book… Do not seal up the words of this prophecy of this book, for the time is near… ‘I, Jesus, have sent My angel to testify to you these things for the churches. I am the root and the descendant of David, the bright morning star.”   ~ Revelation 22: 7, 10 & 16

The Rose Window in the Saint Chapel is situated at the back of the chapel. The door to enter the chapel is almost right underneath the Rose Window. Therefore, as I entered the building and gasped at the picture of beauty in front of me I was unaware of an even more breath taking sight behind me. I walked further into the chapel to better take in the wonder I say; I turned around and my jaw quite literally dropped, my eyes opened wider as if they could not capture the entire image and before I could stop myself I exclaimed, “Oh!” In a few moments I composed myself because I realized how complete of an idiot I looked, but my wonder and amazement were still there.

The Rose Window captured my interest even more when I started reading information on it. Similar to the rest of the stain glass windows in Saint Chapel, the Rose Window tells a story with the images in each window piece. The story being told in this window is that of Revelation; with Jesus in the middle and prophesies of revelation in the surrounding sections.  This served as a constant reminder to those in the congregation of the impending return of Christ and judgment of the world.

As I read the first few pages in Revelation I found and interesting verse, “I was in the Spirit on the Lord’s day, and I heard behind me a loud voice like the sound of a trumpet, ¹¹ saying, “Write in a book what you see, and send it to the seven churches: to Ephesus and to Smyrna and to Pergamum and to Thyatira and to Sardis and to Philadelphia and to Laodicea” (Revelation 1: 10-11).  Now even though Saint Chapel is not listed among these churches it is a descendent of those churches which were instrumental in the development of the Christian Faith.  Therefore, I find it very fitting that they would choose to have a constant reminder of that very revelation in their chapel.

God commands us to always remember that this life is not eternal, this world will end, our lives will become new and the nonbeliever will be punished. Very often that important truth is forgotten, it is pushed to the background and we are scared to think about it. But God wanted it to be known, he wanted it to be sent to the seven largest churches of the time, He wanted it to be written in a book and kept for the rest of time, He wanted it to be remembered through the ages. The Rose Window in Saint Chapel has dedicated one of the most famous windows in the world simply to the representation of God’s message to His people. 

Lazarus is Raised From the Dead

Year: Between 2^nd and 5^th centuries

Artist: Unknown

Location: Catacombs of Pricilla

Medium: Fresco

Dimensions: Approx. 1ft by 1ft

So Jesus, again being deeply moved within, came to the tomb. Now it was a cave, and a stone was lying against it. ³⁹ Jesus said, “Remove the stone.” Martha, the sister of the deceased, said to Him, “Lord, by this time there will be a stench, for he has been dead four days.” ⁴⁰ Jesus said to her, “Did I not say to you that if you believe, you will see the glory of God?” ⁴¹ So they removed the stone. Then Jesus raised His eyes, and said, “Father, I thank You that You have heard Me. ⁴² I knew that You always hear Me; but because of the people standing around I said it, so that they may believe that You sent Me.” When He had said these things, He cried out with a loud voice, “Lazarus, come forth.” ⁴⁴

The man who had died came forth.  ~ John 11: 38-44

I have chosen to enter the mind of the artist who created this piece of art. It is not a well-known piece and the artist himself is anonymous, however, from the tour we were given of the Pricilla Catacombs I have written a poem (if you wish to call it poetry) of what any artist working in those dark halls may have been thinking, seeing, hearing and feeling.  These are the musings of an artist.

Light in the Dark

The dead surround me, they press in on me

Their silence is deafening, their voices are not heard.

As I paint I try to hear them, but they have gone now;

Gone to pastures green, gone to cups overflowing

I hear a mother weeping for the child that will cry no more

She calls to the dead, but they will not answer.

She calls to the living, they cannot console her.

She calls to her Savior who now holds her child in His arms

A dark corridor descends to the right of me,

It is filled with bodies swallowed by the black.

I have walked these corridors, I have seen these bodies,

I have mourned their passing, I have celebrated their death.

I rejoice in their return, I praise their devotion to the Lord

I seek the good which God brings from sorrow.

I seek to show life where there is none,

To bring hope to a weeping mother.

The light flickers near my head, my arm begins its stroke

It must be done fast, it must be done bold.

I don’t have time to be elaborate

I don’t have time to fix mistakes

The blackness of his tomb appears, his body forms in the black

The man raised from the dead, Lazarus the faithful

The friend of Jesus, the one for whom wept

I form His outstretched hand; The Savior reaches toward the fallen

I wish to spread hope to the dead, to the weeping mother

Her loved one will be raised again, raised with the faithful

The friends of Jesus, the ones for whom He has wept

We hold His outstretched hand, which he reaches toward His beloved.

Sacrifice of Isaac

Year: 1452

Artist: Lorenzo Ghiberti

Location: Museo Dell’ Opera del Duomo: Florence, Italy

Medium: Bronze 

“Now it came about that after these things, that God tested Abraham, and said to him,  “Abraham!”, and he said, “Here I am.” He said, “Take now your son, your only son, whom you love, Isaac, and go to the land of Moriah and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains… Abraham stretched out his hand and took the knife to slay his son. But the angel of the Lord called to him from heavven and said, “Abraham! Abraham! And he said, “Here I am.”  He said do not stretch out your hand against the lad, and do nothing to him; for now I know that you fea God.” ~ Genesis 22: 1-2 & 10-12

The Sacrifice of Isaac was created by Lorenzo Ghiberti an artist who specialized in bronze artwork. He was the son of a goldsmith and he learned the trade form his father. As he grew and learned his trade more he realized that he was more fond of scultures, delicate design and bronze scultpures than what his father did. He eventually left home due to the plague; he traveled the world and found other artists who could help him perfect his techneque of sculpting. Eventually the plague sceased and the opportunity presented itself for Ghiberti to return to Florence. The San Giovanni doors were in need of completion, therefore a competion was held to determin which art master should be the one to have the honor of sculpting them. Ghiberti rose to the challenge, he threw all other obligations aside and focused simply on this one task. He knew it would mean instant recongnition for him and would leave a lasting impression for the rest of his life and further. Therefore, even though he was much younger than the rest of the competitors he entered with determination and confidance for the task.

The scene to create for the cometion was the Sacrifice of Isaac due to the complexity I all its emements. While this competition went on Ghiberti did something that none of his fellow contestants did, instead of hiding his work from all around him for fear that others would steal his ideas, he reached out to the public to see what they wanted from him. This piece of art was so important to him that he was not willing to leave it all on his shoulders to create. Therefore, while his fellow artists were making their mistakes secretly, Ghiberti was accepting the criticism of others and perfecting his art.

At the end of the competion each of the artists shoed exelence in their individual art pieces. Each portrayed their mastery of the trade, their skill at sculpting, and their eye for detail. However, dispite their masterpieces there was one that trumped them all, it was the only one where no flaws could be found in it and the only one that was most liked by the judges, fellow artists and townspeople. Ghiberti’s fished product proved to be his own gateway into fame as a scutpure, his name would be forever remembered and he would be ranked amoung the great for the rest of his life and beyond. 

The Last Judgment

Artist: Michelangelo

Year: 1536-1541

Location: Sistine Chapel, Rome

Medium: Fresco

Dimensions: 539.3in by 472.4in 

“The Lord Jesus will be revealed from heaven with His mighty angels in flaming fire, ⁸ dealing out retribution to those who do not know God and to those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. ⁹ These will pay the penalty of eternal destruction, away from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of His power, ¹⁰ when He comes to be glorified in His saints on that day, and to be marveled at among all who have believed—for our testimony to you was believed. ¹¹ To this end also we pray for you always, that our God will count you worthy of your calling, and fulfill every desire for goodness and the work of faith with power, ¹² so that the name of our Lord Jesus will be glorified in you, and you in Him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ.”    ~ 2 Thess. 7-12

The Fresco of The Last Judgment, painted by Michelangelo, is a depiction of the day when Christ will come to judge the earth and all the people in it. It took Michelangelo four years to complete this fresco and this was done almost twenty years after the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel had also been completed by him. This is a great portrayal of how art had changed so much just within the span of twenty years. “Although the ceiling expressed God’s love and the promise of salvation, now pessimism broods” (Art Past Art Present, 334). Christ is a menacing ruler, his wrath is being acted out against the wicked and even those closest to him tremble in fear. Mary is shown on his right side and she cowers at his judgment.  Michelangelo’s biographer, Condivi, wrote that Mary is “slightly timid in appearance and almost as if uncertain of the wrath and mystery of God” (Art Past, 334).

In addition to Mary, Jesus is surrounded by the martyrs; each holding one of the weapons used to torture and kill them. Saint Bartholomew is the most obvious of all of them as he is holding his flayed skin in his left hand and the knife in his right hand. At the bottom of the painting are the dead of the underworld. To Jesus’ left side are the dead being raised and then to His left are the tortured sinners descending into the inferno of hell.

When standing in the Sistine Chapel and looking at The Last Judgment it is as if it is the fresco is jumping out of the wall at the viewer. It is almost an overpowering sight as there are so many figures and so much detail to the entire painting. It is a work of art that few could master and it was obvious at the time that Michelangelo was the only one to be trusted to do it. As Condivi said, “In this work Michelangelo expressed all that the art of painting can do with the human figure, leaving out no attitude or gesture” (Art Past, 335). 

Bibliography

Bible. New American Standard. Zondervan Publishing House, Grand Rapids, Michigan. 2000.

Wilkins, David, Schultz, Bernard, Linduff, Katheryn. Art Past Art Present. Sixth Edition. Laurence King Publishing. London. 2009.

Rome Reader. Council of Trent. Geneva College. 2010-2011. Published by Geneva College.