Monreale cathedral, bronze doors of Bonannus of Pisa, Noah’s Ark
The bronze doors of the west entrance of Monreale cathedral were signed and dated (1186) by Bonannus of Pisa who also made two sets of doors for Pisa Cathedral. Twenty Old Testament scenes occupy the five lower rows and twenty New Testament scenes the upper five rows. Simply titled “Noah’s ark” (“Arca Noe”), this single scene captures several moments in the story of the flood. The waters of the flood are swirling about the base of the ark – portrayed characteristically in the shape of a large house. Noah leads a pair of animals up a ramp towards the ark and a large bird – alluding perhaps to the birds that Noah will send out as the floodwaters recede – enters the ark behind him. This is the second panel from the left in the third row of Old Testament scenes (counting from the bottom) on the left door. It follows the scene of Cain killing Abel, effectively making that murder representative of the sins of mankind for which God sent the flood as punishment.
D'Emilio photo archive no. s19781127_2075u (13.4.20/JD)Galleries:Bonannus of Pisa, Bronze doors, Bronze doors of Bonannus of Pisa, Monreale cathedral, Italy 1180s, Noah, the ark, and the flood, Religious Sculpture, Tituli on bronze doorsKeywords:ark, flood, rampPhoto Location: Monreale, ItalyPhotographer: Dr. James D’EmilioDevice Make: NikonDevice Model: Nikon SUPER COOLSCAN 5000 EDOriginal Dimensions: 5286×3530Picture Orientation: LandscapeGPS Coordinates:Picture Number: 22653
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