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27-633: The naves of these three churches were furnished with Gothic cross vaults at the end of the 15th century providing an ideal surface for frescos of the Biblia pauperum (or people's bible) based on popular stories from the richly illustrated medieval manuscripts of the Old and New Testaments . The artist can be recognised from his distinctive emblem present in one or more of the frescos in all three churches. His warm colours ranging from dark red and russet to pastel shades of yellow, green, grey and black are distinctive as are

54-414: A heading oracle. The return from exile is the theological premise of the prophet's visions in chapters 1–6. Chapters 7–8 address the quality of life God wants his renewed people to enjoy, containing many encouraging promises to them. Chapters 9–14 comprise two " oracles " of the future. The book begins with a preface, which recalls the nation's history, for the purpose of presenting a solemn warning to

81-557: A turning away from sin towards faith in Him. Zechariah's concern for purity is apparent in the temple, priesthood and all areas of life as the prophecy gradually eliminates the influence of the governor in favour of the high priest, and the sanctuary becomes ever more clearly the centre of messianic fulfillment. The prominence of prophecy is quite apparent in Zechariah, but it is also true that Zechariah (along with Haggai) allows prophecy to yield to

108-539: A woman in basket , and the four chariot. The symbolic action, the crowning of Joshua , describes how the kingdoms of the world become the kingdom of God's Messiah . Two years after the initial visions, chapters 7 and 8 are delivered. They are an answer to the question whether the days of mourning for the destruction of the city should be kept any longer. The answer is addressed to the entire people, assuring them of God's presence and blessing. This section consists of two "oracles" or "burdens": The purpose of this book

135-652: Is a Jewish text attributed to Zechariah , a Hebrew prophet of the late 6th century BC. In the Hebrew Bible , the text is included as part of the Twelve Minor Prophets , itself a part of the second division of that work. In the Christian Old Testament , the Book of Zechariah is considered to be a separate book . One of the three prophets from the post- exilic period, Zechariah's prophecies took place during

162-564: Is descriptions of the Day of the Lord , when "the Lord will go forth and fight against those nations as when he fights on a day of battle." These chapters also contain "pessimism about the present, but optimism for the future based on the expectation of an ultimate divine victory and the subsequent transformation of the cosmos". The final word in Zechariah proclaims that on the Day of the Lord "there shall be no more

189-514: Is not strictly historical but theological and pastoral . The main emphasis is that God is at work and all His good deeds, including the construction of the Second Temple , are accomplished "not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit." Ultimately, YHWH plans to live again with His people in Jerusalem. He will save them from their enemies and cleanse them from sin. However, God requires repentance,

216-631: The Biblia . The iconographical programmes of these books are shared with many other forms of medieval art, including stained glass windows and carvings of biblical subjects. Since books are more portable than these, they may well have been important in transmitting new developments in depicting the subjects. Most subjects, such as the Annunciation to the Shepherds , can be seen in a very similar form at different dates, in different media and different countries. Book of Zechariah The Book of Zechariah

243-457: The Book of Revelation , which narrates the denouement of history, is also colored by images in Zechariah. Chapters 9–14 of the Book of Zechariah are an early example of apocalyptic literature . Although not as fully developed as the apocalyptic visions described in the Book of Daniel , the " oracles ", as they are titled in Zechariah 9–14, contain apocalyptic elements. One theme these oracles contain

270-837: The Psalms , the Lamentations and Amos . The earliest manuscripts of the Biblia Pauperum were made in Bavaria and Austria in the 14th century, they have 34–36 groups. Later versions add more scenes, and one of the most detailed versions is the 50-part blockbook version, produced in the Netherlands in 1480–1495. The Biblia was rivalled by the Speculum Humanae Salvationis ( Mirror of Human Salvation ), another very popular compilation of typological pairings, with rather more text than

297-590: The Elmelunde Master. It is however the frescos in Fanefjord Church uncovered in the 1930s which are considered to be the most interesting and comprehensive. The Elmelunde Master's school is also credited with the frescos in churches on the neighbouring island of Falster at Tingsted , Nørre Alslev , Kettinge and Åstrup . And the following images from Fanefjord Church: Biblia pauperum The Biblia pauperum ( Latin for "Paupers' Bible")

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324-595: The Temple was encouraged by the Persian monarchs in hopes that it would stabilize the local population. This policy was good politics on the part of the Persians, and the Jews viewed it as a blessing from God. The name "Zechariah" means "God remembered." Not much is known about Zechariah's life other than what may be inferred from the book. It has been speculated that his grandfather Iddo

351-459: The books of Isaiah , Jeremiah , and Ezekiel , the Deuteronomistic history , and the themes from First Zechariah. This has led some to believe that the writer(s) or editor(s) of Second Zechariah may have been a disciple of the prophet Zechariah. There are some scholars who go even further and divide Second Zechariah into Second Zechariah (9–11) and Third Zechariah (12–14) since each begins with

378-625: The exile, a significant portion of the population of the Kingdom of Judah was taken to Babylon , where the prophets told them to make their homes, suggesting they would spend a long time there. Cyrus the Great conquered the Neo-Babylonian Empire in 539 BC. The following year, he released the Edict of Cyrus , which marked the beginning of the first return to Judah under Sheshbazzar . Darius acceded to

405-470: The faces of his figures who all have sleepy eyes whether in scenes of heaven or hell. Vines, flowers and tree branches complete the images. In the 16th century, following the Reformation , the frescos were covered with coats of whitewash which hid them from view until quite recently. It was in the 1880s that they were first rediscovered in the church at Elmelunde with the result that the artist became known as

432-447: The figures in the miniatures could be written on scrolls coming out of their mouths. To this extent one might see parallels with modern comics . The tradition is a further simplification of the Bible moralisée tradition, which was similar but with more text. Like these, the Biblia pauperum was usually in the local vernacular language, rather than Latin. Originally Paupers' Bibles took

459-408: The form of colourful hand-painted illuminated manuscripts on vellum , though in the fifteenth century printed examples with woodcuts took over. The Biblia pauperum was among the commonest works put out in block-book form, mainly in the Netherlands and Germany, where both text and images were done entirely in a single woodcut for each page. The first of many editions printed using movable type

486-468: The population. The name Biblia pauperum was applied by German scholars in the 1930s. Each group of images in the Biblia pauperum is dedicated to one event from the Gospels , which is accompanied by two slightly smaller pictures of Old Testament events which prefigure the central one, according to belief of medieval theologians in typology ; these parallels are explained in two blocks of text, and each of

513-487: The present generation. Then follows a series of eight visions succeeding one another in one night, which may be regarded as a symbolical history of Israel, intended to furnish consolation to the returned exiles and stir up hope in their minds. These visions include the four horses and Four Horns and Four Craftsmen , man with a measuring line , Joshua the High Priest , gold lampstand and two olive trees , flying scroll and

540-503: The priesthood; this is particularly apparent in comparing Zechariah to Third Isaiah (chapters 55–66 of the Book of Isaiah ), whose author was active sometime after the first return from exile. Most Christian commentators read the series of predictions in chapters 7 to 14 as Messianic prophecies , either directly or indirectly. These chapters helped the writers of the Gospels understand Jesus’ suffering, death and resurrection, which they quoted as they wrote of Jesus' final days. Much of

567-419: The reign of Darius the Great . Chapters 1–8 of the book are contemporary with the prophecies of Haggai , while chapters 9–14 (often termed Second Zechariah) are thought to have been written much later—in the 5th century, during the late Persian or early Ptolemaic period. Scholars believe that Ezekiel , with his blending of ceremony and vision, heavily influenced the visionary works of Zechariah 1–8. During

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594-508: The three Biblical scenes is introduced with a Latin verse. Four Prophets hold scrolls with quotations from their Books, which prefigure the same event from the Gospels. For example, the scene of Longinus spearing Jesus as he hangs on the Cross is accompanied by God bringing forth Eve from the side of Adam, and Moses striking the rock so that water flowed forth, together with prophecies of Zechariah ,

621-718: The throne in 522 BC. He divided the many colonies of the empire into provinces, each of which was overseen by a governor. Zerubbabel was appointed by Darius as governor over Judah (now redesignated the province of Yehud Medinata of the Persian Empire ). Under the reign of Darius, Zechariah also emerged, focusing his prophecies on the rebuilding of the Temple . Unlike the Babylonians, the Persian Empire went to great lengths to keep cordial relations between vassal and lord. The rebuilding of

648-463: Was a tradition of picture Bibles beginning probably with Ansgar , and a common printed block-book in the later Middle Ages to visualize the typological correspondences between the Old and New Testaments. Unlike a simple "illustrated Bible", where the pictures are subordinated to the text, these Bibles placed the illustration in the centre, with only a brief text or sometimes no text at all. Words spoken by

675-564: Was printed in German, in Bamberg in about 1462 by Albrecht Pfister ; there were about eighteen incunabulum editions. A Biblia pauperum was not intended to be bought by the poor — some manuscripts were opulent and very expensive, although the block-book versions were far cheaper, and probably affordable by parish priests. The simpler versions were however probably used by the clergy as a teaching aid for those who could not read, which included most of

702-465: Was the head of a priestly family who returned with Zerubbabel and that Zechariah may have been a priest as well as a prophet. This is supported by Zechariah's interest in the Temple and the priesthood, and from Iddo's preaching in the Books of Chronicles . Most modern scholars believe the Book of Zechariah was written by at least two different people. Zechariah 1–8, sometimes referred to as First Zechariah,

729-500: Was written in the 6th century BC and contains oracles from the historical prophet Zechariah , who lived in the Achaemenid Empire during the kingdom of Darius the Great . Zechariah 9–14, often called Second Zechariah, contains within the text no datable references to specific events or individuals, but most scholars give the text a date in the 5th century BC. Second Zechariah, in the opinion of some scholars, appears to make use of

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