Why was this made, and how was it used?
By Anne le Gassick '24
This small wooden rectangular carving was most likely made to be most part of an altar screen that contained representations of a series of biblical stories. An altar screen is a partition that is usually decorated that separates the nave from a chancel in a church. There are many examples of Byzantine and Gothic altar screens that demonstrate what the Sacrifice of Isaac could have been a part of. There are 3 mortises on the sides and nail holes on the upper and lower edges that point to the piece being a part of a larger panel.
The scene itself has an importance across Judaism, Christianity, and Islam because they are all Abrahamic religions. Abraham was known as their first prophet and this scene has importance because it represents an act out of faith in God. Abraham, believing that God wants him to kill his son, decides that he is willing to sacrifice his own son if it means that he can prove his faith in God. This scene would certainly have been something that was displayed along with other biblical scenes in religious spaces as an act that was an example of the faith that should be had in God. Art pieces representing the Sacrifice of Isaac are common across these religions and this piece is an example of art made by an Islamic group, but displayed in a Christian church.