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John the Baptist recognizes Christ by the appearance of a dove, from a Mirror of Holiness (Mir’at al-quds) of Father Jerome Xavier

1602-04

The Cleveland Museum of Art

The Cleveland Museum of Art
Cleveland, United States

This scene of John the Baptist’s recognition of Jesus is set in a lavishly decorated Mughal courtyard. The artist has closely followed Father Jerome’s text, which tells of the Holy Spirit taking the form of a dove that sits atop Jesus’s head, rather than the text of the Gospels, which describes the dove as hovering in the air. John wears the black robes of a Jesuit, garb that in the context of the Mughal court identifies him as a teacher. He points to an open book to acknowledge the fulfillment of the prophecy of the Messiah, and in recognition of the Word of God.

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  • Title: John the Baptist recognizes Christ by the appearance of a dove, from a Mirror of Holiness (Mir’at al-quds) of Father Jerome Xavier
  • Date Created: 1602-04
  • Physical Dimensions: Sheet: 26.3 x 15.7 cm (10 3/8 x 6 3/16 in.); Image: 22.5 x 10.9 cm (8 7/8 x 4 5/16 in.)
  • Provenance: An Indian family in Great Britain, whose grandfather brought the manuscript to England in the 1930s or 1940s through 2005, (Oliver Forge and Brendan Lynch Ltd., London, UK, 2005, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art), The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH, 2005-present
  • Type: Manuscript
  • Rights: CC0
  • External Link: https://clevelandart.org/art/2005.145.50.b
  • Medium: Opaque watercolor, ink, color and gold on paper
  • Fun Fact: Jesus holds a rosary with a cross even in scenes prior to his crucifixion.
  • Department: Indian and Southeast Asian Art
  • Culture: Mughal India, Allahabad, made for Prince Salim (1569–1627)
  • Credit Line: John L. Severance Fund
  • Collection: Indian Art
  • Accession Number: 2005.145.50.b
The Cleveland Museum of Art

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