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Wikimedia Commons · Public domain · Hover to magnify, click for fullscreen
Original fileA central two-faced figure representing the union of the Old and New Laws stands above a seven-branched menorah and a sacrificial altar. Ten medallions surround the center, each featuring a man with a specific animal—such as a ram, bull, goat, or dove—representing different Mosaic sacrifices. Latin inscriptions explain the moral virtues associated with each animal and how they prefigure spiritual truths.
This diagram is a prime example of medieval typology, a method of interpretation that views Old Testament laws and events as 'types' or prefigurations of Christian mysteries. It reflects the 12th-century intellectual project of synthesizing all known history and law into a unified, visual theological system.
Lex p(er) moyse(n) data est. gracia z ueritas p(er) ih(esu)m xp(istu)m facta est. Adulter lapidatur Oculum pro oculo In ariete propter principatum In columbis propter simplicitatem In turture propter castitatem In agno propter innocentiam In vitulo propter virtutem In tauro propter fortitudinem In hyrco p p t purgationem peccati Altare Candelabru(m) Anima que peccaverit morte morietur
Translation
The law was given through Moses. Grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. The adulterer is stoned An eye for an eye In the ram because of headship In the doves because of simplicity In the turtledove because of chastity In the lamb because of innocence In the calf because of virtue In the bull because of fortitude In the goat because of the purgation of sin Altar Candelabrum The soul that sins shall die
Herrad of Landsberg
The artist was the abbess of Hohenburg Abbey and author of the Hortus deliciarum, the first encyclopedic work written by a woman.
Hortus deliciarum
This image is a reproduction of a folio from this foundational 12th-century manuscript that compiled the knowledge of the liberal arts and theology.
Object
Engraving
allegory
Digital Source
Wikimedia Commons · Public domain
https://archive.org/details/gri_33125010499123/page/n174/mode/1up
Public domain
1530 × 1530 px
1fa0228f1278139343df837cb580de3639f9fc0b
January 18, 2026
March 24, 2026
Linked Data
AI AI-cataloged fields generated by gemini-3-flash-preview on April 2, 2026. Getty identifiers are AI-inferred and may require verification.