Adoration of the Magi (Kings): Balthasar, Melchior, and Caspar (three kings from the East) pay homage to the infant Jesus with gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh
Adoration of the Shepherds: Shepherds are grouped around the infant Jesus in reverential attitudes, usually kneeling, hats off, and presenting rustic gifts
Agony in the Garden: After the Last Supper and immediately before his arrest, Christ retires to the Mount of Olives to pray
Annunciation: The announcement by the angel Gabriel to the Virgin Mary: “You shall conceive and bear a son, and you shall give him the name Jesus”
Appearance of Christ to his Mother: occurs after the Resurrection and before the Ascension
Ascension: The term used for the last appearance of Christ to the apostles after his Resurrection, when he was taken up to heaven in a cloud
Assumption: Term used to denote the taking up to heaven of the soul and body of the Virgin Mary three days after her death; Its derivation implies that she was borne to heaven (i.e. by angels) – unlike Christ who ascended, that is simply went up
Baptism: The rite of initiation into the Christian Church by immersion or sprinkling with water; regarded historically as an act of purification and rebirth
Betrayal: The arrest of Christ in the garden of Gethsemane follows chronologically the Agony in the Garden (see above); usually depicted as the Kiss of Judas with a throng of soldiers and perhaps Jewish elders
Christ Stripped of Garments – one of final scenes preceding the Crucifixion of Jesus
Christ Taking Leave of his Mother: Christ bids farewell to his Mother before entering Jerusalem for the last time
Circumcision of Christ: Christ was circumcised when he was a week old and given the name of Jesus
Coronation of the Virgin: Subject forms either the final and culminating scene in the narrative cycle of the life of the Virgin following her death and assumption or more generally portrayed as a devotional, non-narrative figure, the personification of the Church itself
Cross: The symbol of Christ’s sacrifice and more generally of Christian religion
Crowning with Thorns: One of the last of the series of scenes comprising the trial of Christ before led away to be crucified; generally shown on dais, crown of thorns on head, dressed in red or purple robe; in some instances crown is pressed down on head of Jesus
Crucifixion: The death of Christ on the cross is a central image in Christian art and the visual focus of Christian contemplation
Death of the Virgin: Dormition; forms cycle of events widely depicted in Christian Art, especially in churches dedicated to Virgin Mary
Descent into Limbo: Christ holding a banner descends into Hell to save the Old Testament souls
Descent of the Holy Ghost: Pentacost – Ten days after the Ascension the apostles were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to talk in other tongues
Scenes of Death: sufferings of Christian martyrs - beheaded; executed; murdered by the sword, by fire etc.
Descent form the Cross: Deposition; episode that immediately succeeds the Crucifixion when Christ’s body is taken down from the cross; often wrapped in a linen sheet swathed with myrrh and aloes to preserve the body
Dispute with the Doctors: Jesus among the Doctors; Dispute in the Temple; when he was twelve years old Jesus accompanied his parents to Jerusalem for the festival of Passover; parents find Jesus in the Temple engaged in learned conversation with the Jewish scribes (a debate – not quarrel)
Ecce Homo: Behold the Man! The words of Pontius Pilate, the Roman governor of Judaea, to the Jews gathered outside the judgment hall after Christ had been scourged and then mocked by soldiers; depicted either as a devotional image showing the crowned head or half-figure of Christ alone, or as a narrative statement that includes the many persons of the drama in the setting of a town square or the balcony of Pilate’s hall
Entombment: Placing of Christ’s body in the tomb by Joseph of Arimathaea
Entry into Jerusalem: Christ’s final visit to Jerusalem, his entry into the city riding on an ass and surrounded by a crowd crying Hosanna
Flagellation: Christ’s scourging ordered by Pontius Pilate the governor of Judaea, just before he was led away to be crucified
Flight into Egypt: Joseph took Jesus and his mother away to safety in Egypt to escape the massacre of infants by Herod; usually depicted as Mary carrying the infant Jesus in her arms and riding an ass
Four Evangelists: Matthew (angel); Mark (lion); Luke (ox); John (eagle); authors of the four gospels
Holy Women at the Sepulchre: holy women, three maries- who were first to discover the empty tomb after Christ’s resurrection
Joseph: husband of the Virgin Mary
Joseph of Arimathaea: obtained permission from Pilate to place body of Christ in his own tomb
Lamentation: Body of Christ stretched out on the ground or on an altar-like block of stone surrounded by mourners
Last Judgment: The Second coming of Christ, when, according to the Christian doctrine, there will be a general resurrection of the dead who, with the living will be finally judged and consigned to heaven or hell
Last Supper: The last meal which Christ took with the disciples in Jerusalem before his arrest and at which he announced to the Twelve that one of them would betray him
Marriage at Cana: Christ’s first public miracle, performed at a wedding feast at the village of Cana in Galilee
Mary: (Virgin Mary), mother of Jesus
Mary Magdalene: woman that anointed Christ’s feet and present at the Crucifixion; attributes include a jar; shown either before her conversion richly attired or as a penitent wearing a simple cloak or naked covered only by her long hair
Massacre of the Innocents: Herod’s ordering of wholesale slaughter of infants of Bethlehem fearing his own power would be usurped by child who was destined to become “king of the Jews”
Mocking of Christ: subjugation of Christ to various indignities after his arrest in Jerusalem and either just before or after his appearance before Caiaphas the high priest
Nativity: Scene of birth of Jesus with infant lying in a manger with Mary and Joseph adored by the three kings and/or the shepherds, and/or and ox (strength) and ass (beast of burden)
Nativity of the Virgin: Scene of birth of Mary, follows meeting of Joachim and Anne at the Golden Gate and preceding the Presentation of the Virgin
Noli me tangere: “touch me not”; Christ appears to Mary Magdalene after the Resurrection and begs her not to touch him
Passion: The suffering and death of Christ on the cross; in art the term includes the events leading up to, and following the crucifixion; can be depicted as single events or as cycles: Typical subjects include: Entry into Jerusalem; Last Supper; Peter, apostle Washing the disciples’ feet; Agony in the Garden; Betrayal; Peter, apostle, Denial and Repentance of Peter; Trial of Christ; Mocking of Christ; Flagellation; Crowning with Thorns; Ecce Homo; Road to Calvary; Stations of the Cross; Christ Stripped of his Garments; Raising of the Cross; Crucifixion; Descent from the Cross; Pieta; Bearing of the Body of Christ; Entombment; Descent into Limbo; Resurrection; Holy Women at the Sepulchre; Appearance of Christ to his Mother; Mary Magdalene, Noli me tangere; Journey to Emmaus; Supper at Emmaus; Ascension; Descent of the Holy Ghost
Pieta: A devotional image with the sorrowing Mary holding the dead body of her son
Presentation in the Temple: The brining of the infant Jesus by Mary and Joseph to the Temple in Jerusalem to be “consecrated” to the Lord
Presentation of the Virgin: Generally Mary is shown climbing the steps of the Temple, sometimes with other virgins, towards the high priest Zacharias who awaits her at the top; generally depicted older than three years; Anne and Joachim stand at foot of stairs
Raising of Lazarus: Jesus raises Lazarus from his tomb (brother of Martha and Mary Magdalene)
Raising of the Cross: Elevation of the Cross with body of Christ attached to it, especially 16th – 18th centuries
Resurrection: Christ rose again on the third day after his death – one of fundamental tenets of Christian faith; Resurrection is a return to earth for 40 days until the Ascension
Road to Calvary: The Ascent or Procession to Calvary; Christ Bearing the Cross - Christ’s last journey from House of Pilate – where he had been scourged and then mocked by the soldiers who placed a crown of thorns on his head – to the hill of Golgotha where he was crucified
Stations of the Cross: The places on Christ’s route through the streets of Jerusalem where he supposedly halted on his way to Golgotha
Stigmata: marks corresponding to the wounds of Christ which have sometimes been observed to manifest themselves on the bodies of the exceptionally devout as a consequence of religious transport. Attributes of St. Francis of Assisi and Catherine of Siena.
Supper at Emmaus: the sequel to the Journey to Emmaus. Two disciples on the way to Emmaus – met by Christ but did not recognize him; go to eat together and recognize that it is Christ ; generally shown as figures seated at table eating
Transfiguration: The occasion when Christ manifested his divine nature to the disciples – Peter. James, and John – took to mountain and in their presence became transfigured
Trial of Christ: Events that occurred between the arrest of Christ in the garden of Gethsemane and the moment that he was led away to be crucified; scenes are often considered part of the Passion of Christ
Tribute Money: Tax money owed to Caesar or a tax levied on all Jews for the upkeep of the Temple
Trinity: The doctrine that God is of one nature yet three persons: Father, Son and Holy Ghost.
Virgin Mary: The mother of Jesus. Rich iconography grew out of need for the Christian Church to have a mother figure. Many possibilities in art.
Visitation: The visit of the Virgin Mary to her cousin Elizabeth (the mother of John the Baptist), just after the Annunciation. The meeting is one of mutual rejoicing: Mary had conceived and Elizabeth was six months pregnant after a lifetime of barrenness.