Hortus deliciarum folio 67v 1899

At the center, a crowned figure of Christ elevates a chalice above an altar labeled 'CRUX,' symbolizing the Eucharist. Below him sits the Ark of the Covenant containing the rod of Aaron and the manna, while eight surrounding medallions feature figures holding scrolls that reject animal sacrifice in favor of spiritual devotion. The entire composition is encased in a circular border containing a Latin cipher regarding the blood of goats and oxen.

This work represents the 12th-century scholastic and Neoplatonic effort to synthesize biblical history into a systematic visual pedagogy. It illustrates the 'spiritualization of sacrifice,' a key theme in medieval natural philosophy and theology that influenced later Hermetic and alchemical interpretations of the 'Great Work' as an internal, rather than material, process.