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Lamp Depicting New Testament 'Parable of the Vineyard' from Matthew
Circa 4th-5th Century AD
Description: Very important early Christian lamp the concave discus depicting a man blowing a horn in a seated wicker tree house. Below, a dog chases a rabbit, and a small person tied by the wrists is suspended from the tree house. A bunch of grapes hangs from his neck, and a bird sits on top of the hut. An ornate floral and tendril pattern decorates the shoulder.
Length: 5.75 in. (14.4 cm)
Condition: Excellent condition with crisp impression.
Provenance: Ex-collection of Hon. Robert Erskine.
Background: A very enigmatic lamp with important early Christian significance. According to Annewies van den Hoek in Light from the Age of Augustine, the scene follows the Pseudo-Cyprianic treatise De duobus montibus Sina et Sinon, which in a rather loose way interprets biblical passages such as the parable of the vineyard from Matthew 21:33-43 and the song of the vineyards from Isaiah 5:1-7. In the interpretation, a guardian is appointed to survey the territory form the opening of a watch-hut. As soon as a robber enters, the guardian makes noise to scare him away. On another level, she writes, the vineyard stands for the spiritual life of the Christian people. The robber represents the devil, who tries to separate humans from the spiritual vineyard. The 'tree man' is an image of Christ, who is lifted up on a tree in a watch-hut trying to ward off the evil actions of the wandering devil by sounding the alarm. Another interpretation is that the scene is meant to represent the Dendrites, a community of early Christian ascetics who lived as hermits in bamboo huts constructed in trees and adopted a lifestyle of subsistence.
Reference: For examples see Cover Illustration and #51, page 61, from Light from the Age of Augustine by Annewies van den Hoek; and also The Dendrites in Pre-Christian and Christian Historical-Literary Tradition and Iconography by Constantine Charalampidis, see Cover Illustration and #11, which covers the Dendrite connection in detail.
Price: SOLD
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