Tetramorph

A tetramorph is a symbolic arrangement of 4 differing elements. Or the combination of 4 different elements in 1 unit. The term is derived from the Greek tetra, meaning 4, & morph, meaning shape. The word comes from the Greek for “4 forms” or “shapes.” In English usage, each symbol may be described as a tetramorph in the singular, & a group as “the tetramorphs,” but usually only in contexts where all 4 are included.

The tetramorphs were especially common in Early Medieval art, above all in illuminated Gospel books. But remain common in religious art to the present day. In Christian art, the tetramorph is the union of the symbols of the 4 Evangelists, derived from the 4 living creatures in the Book of Ezekiel, into a single figure or, more commonly, a group of 4 figures. Each of the 4 Evangelists is associated with 1 of the living creatures, usually shown with wings.

The most common association, but not the original or only, is: Mark the King, Lion; Luke the lowly Servant, Ox; Matthew the Angel; & John the Eagle.

In Christian art & iconography, Evangelist portraits are often escorted by tetramorphs. Or the symbols alone are used to represent them. Evangelist portraits that depict them in their human forms are often accompanied by their symbolic creatures, & Christ in Majesty is often shown surrounded by the 4 symbols.

The prophet Ezekiel lived among the Jews who were exiled to Babylon in the 6th century BC. The creatures in his vision, from which the images of the tetramorph came, are reminiscent of ancient Assyrian art.

The animals associated with the Christian tetramorph originate in the Babylonian symbols of the 4 fixed signs of the zodiac: the ox (Taurus); the lion (Leo); the eagle (Scorpio); the man/angel (Aquarius). In Western astrology, the 4 symbols are associated with the elements of Earth, Fire, Water, & Air, respectively.

The Christian tetramorph creatures were also common in Egyptian, Greek, & Assyrian mythology. These early Christians adopted this symbolism & adapted it for the 4 Evangelists as the tetramorph, which 1st shows up in Christian art in the 5th century. But its interpretative origin dates back to Irenaeus in the 2nd century.

The association of the 4 living creatures with the 4 Evangelists originated with Irenaeus in the 2nd century. The interpretation of each creature has changed through church history. The most common interpretation, 1st laid out by Victorinus & adopted by Jerome, St. Gregory, & the Book of Kellis, is that the man is Matthew, the lion Mark, the ox Luke, & the eagle John. The creatures of the tetramorph, just like the 4 Gospels of the Evangelists, represent 4 facets of Christ.

The 5 main outlines are summarized below with a representative proponent & rationale. The given rationale major themes in each Gospel, or the aspect of Christ emphasized in each Gospel:

• 1st Outline (Irenaeus): The man is Matthew, because his Gospel begins with the genealogy of Jesus; the lion is John, because his Gospel begins full of confidence; the ox is Luke, because his Gospel begins with priestly sacrifice; & the eagle is Mark, because his Gospel begins with the prophecy of Isaiah. Irenaeus establishes this connection between the 4 living creatures & the 4 Evangelists because he’s seeking an answer to the question “Why 4 Gospels?”
• 2nd Outline (Most common; Jerome): The rationale given for this outline is how the scheme is how each Gospel narrative begins. Matthew is the man because he begins with a genealogy; Mark is the lion, roaming in the desert with prophetic power; Luke is the ox because he begins heavenwards like the divine Word. It’s gotta be said that at a certain point, once enough interpretive authorities in the church backed this scheme, many who followed simply defaulted to their authority.
• 3rd Outline (Augustine): The lion is Matthew, because Matthew’s Gospel shows Christ’s royal character, he who descended from the tribe of Judah; the ox is Luke, because Christ is shown in his priestly character; the man is Mark, because of the humanity of Christ shown in that Gospel focusing on the things the man did; & the eagle is John, because the mystery of the Word ascends to Heaven.
• 4th Outline (Jamieson-Fausset-Brown): The Lion is Matthew, because Matthew portrays the Lord Jesus as the King; the ox is Mark, because Mark portrays Him as a servant; the man is Luke, because Luke portrays Him as a perfect, genuine man; the eagle is John, because John portrays Him as God. This view takes the creatures as symbols of “not the personal character of the Evangelists, but the manifold aspect of Christ…presented by them severally.”
• 5th Outline (Aimee Semple McPherson): The Eagle is Matthew, who presents Jesus as the King who will soon return to seek his people, Jesus will return; the ox is Luke, where he presents Jesus as the suffering servant who bore our sickness, Jesus healing; The Face of Man (representing Mark) presents Jesus as the perfect man who came to save us, Jesus saves; the Lion is John presents Jesus as the Baptizer in the Holy Spirit.

The creatures of the tetramorph (they appear in their animal forms) are predominantly shown as winged figures. The wings (an ancient symbol of divinity) represent the divinity of the Evangelists, the divine nature of Christ, & the virtues required for Christian salvation.

In regard to the depiction of St. Mark in particular, the use of wings distinguishes him from images of St. Jerome, who’s also associated with the image of a lion. The perfect human body of Christ was originally represented as a winged man. The perfect human body of Christ was originally represented as a winged man. Later, it was adapted for St. Matthew to symbolize Christ’s humanity.

In the context of the tetramorphs, the winged man implies Christ’s humanity & reason. As well as Matthew’s account of the Incarnation of Christ. The lion of St. Mark represents courage, resurrection, & royalty. This coincides with Christ’s theme as king in Mark’s Gospel. It’s also interpreted as the Lion of Judah as a reference to Jesus’ (Christ’s) royal lineage.

The ox, or bull, is an ancient Christian symbol of redemption & life through sacrifice, signifying Luke’s records of Christ as a priest & his ultimate sacrifice for the future of humanity. The eagle represents the sky, heavens, & the human spirit, paralleling the divine nature of Christ.

In their earliest appearances, the Evangelists were depicted in their human forms, each with a scroll/book to represent the Gospels. By the 5th century, images of the Evangelists evolved into their respective tetramorphs. By the late Middle Ages, the tetramorphs in the form of creatures were used less frequently. Instead, the Evangelists were often in their human forms accompanied by their symbolic creatures, or as men with the heads of animals.

In images where the creatures surround Christ, the winged man & the eagle are often depicted at Christ’s sides. The lion & ox are positioned lower by His feet, with the man on Christ’s right, taking precedence over the eagle, & the lion to the left of the ox. These positions reflect the medieval great chain of being. The Great Chain of Being is a hierarchical structure of all matter & life, thought by the medieval Islamic & Christian world to have been decreed by God.

The use of the tetramorph in architecture is most common in the decoration of Christian churches. In medieval churches, the symbols of the Evangelists are usually found above the west-facing portals & in the Eastern apse. Particularly surrounding the enthroned figure of Christ in Glory in scenes of the Last Judgment.

This image of Christ in Glory often features Christ Pantocrator (This is basically an Eastern church’s equivalent of Christ/Jesus sitting on the throne of the world) in a mandorla (This is the “halo effect,” or an “aura” that surrounds the whole being/person), surrounded by the creatures of the tetramorph, and is often on the spherical ceiling inside the apse. This is typically as a mosaic or fresco.

In older Roman churches, like Santa Pudenziana & Santa Maria in Trastevere, mosaics often picture the 4 creatures in a straight line rather than in a circular shape. Medieval churches also feature sculptures of bas-relief symbols of the Evangelists on the west facades, externally around the eastern apse windows, or as large statues atop apse walls.

Generally, all 4 creatures of the tetramorph will be found together in either 1 whole image or in 1 whole structure. But it’s not uncommon to have a single Evangelist monopolize the imagery of the church. This is usually found in cities that accept 1 of the Evangelists as their patron saint. An example is St. Mark’s Basilica in Venice, where the winged lion is the city’s mascot & St. Mark is the city’s patron spirit.

Most illuminated Gospel books were prefaced with Evangelist portraits. They are often combined on a single page. Insular manuscripts (It’s exactly what you think, but these “insulars” are monks.) were very focused on abstract linear patterns that combined Mediterranean, Anglo-Saxon, & Celtic influences, the latter mostly traceable from surviving metalwork.

For the most illuminated manuscript portraits, the Evangelist typically occupied a full page. Though numerous examples of Late Antique portraits featured each figure in a standing position. The Evangelists were depicted predominantly in a seated position at a writing desk or with a book or scroll. This is in reference to the Gospels.

The tetramorph of the 4 living creatures is depicted on the World card of many tarot decks. Including the Tarot of Marseilles & the Rider-Waite tarot deck.

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Facebook's unwillingness to show posts from the people I actually follow but show random things I might be interested in sometimes has interesting results. Today I saw this post by Sandra Deiana - coin designer:

"From plaster to metal.
My portrait of Pope Francis created for the Malta Coin Centre. The journey from the sculpted plaster model to the finished coin is always a fascinating transformation.
Every detail you see in metal begins with hours of sculpting by hand."

https://www.facebook.com/sandradeianacoins/posts/pfbid02zrLauaV3NeHLsKTTvNRTVvqQHMynK2pC9nHGpxs1UcfLkRqtwfS2Nu7CrJPmhcXRl

#coindesign #coinart #medallicart #basrelief #sculpture #Numismatics #CoinCollecting #Coins #Pope #Vatican @numismatics

Melanie Calvat

Francoise Melanie Calvat (November 7, 1831-December 14, 1904, 73 upon passing) was a French religious sister/nun in the Roman Catholic Church. A religious sister is a Christian woman who has taken public vows in a religious order dedicated to apostolic works. Even though they’re called nuns, they’re canonically distinct. She & Maximin Guiraud, was/were the 2 seers of Our Lady of La Salette.

Melanie was born in Corps in Isere, France. She was the 4th of 10 kids in a family of extreme poverty. The family was so poor “that the young were sometimes dispatched to beg on the street.”

By the age of 9, Melanie Calvat was hired out as a shepherdess. This is where she met Maximin Guiraud on the eve of their apparition. Her contemporary employers described her as “sulky,” “lazy,” & “uncommunicative.” She spoke the regional Occitan dialect (Patois) & fragmented French. She didn’t have any formal schooling, religious or secular. So naturally, she couldn’t read or write well or at all.

On September 19, 1846, Melanie (a teen at the time) & Maximin (aged 11) saw a vision of the Virgin Mary while tending cows, in the mountains of La Salette. The kids reported seeing a “Beautiful Lady” sitting on a rock, weeping with her head in her hands. She wore a high headdress of roses & a golden crucifix.

The Lady (the Virgin Mary) spoke of the sins of the people. Specifically, the profanation of Sundays & the use of the Lord’s name in vain. She warned of a coming famine (the “potato blight”) if the people didn’t convert. Crucially, the Lady reported sharing individual secrets with each kid, which they were forbidden to reveal until a later date.

The bishop of Grenoble, Philibert de Bruillard, named several commissions to examine the facts. The Marian apparitions were formally approved by the Bishop of Grenoble in 1851. While the event was accepted, Melanie’s personal trajectory became increasingly difficult. Maximin, who entered the seminary, also had difficulties living a normal life.

After the Marian apparition in 1846, Calvat was placed as a boarder in the Sisters of Providence Convent in Corenc, close to Grenoble. She entered religious life at the age of 20. In 1850, she became a postulant with this order & in October 1851, she took the veil.

In May 1853, Bishop de Bruillard died. In early 1854, his replacement refused to grant permission for her to be professed. Because he found that she wasn’t spiritually mature enough. Calvat claimed that the real reason for the refusal was that the bishop was aiming to gain the favor of Emperor Napoleon III of France.

Following the bishop’s refusal to permit her to be professed, Calvat was officially allowed to move to a convent of the Sisters of Charity. However, after 3 weeks, she was returned to Corps en Isere for further education.

She was then allowed to move to Carmel at Darlington in England. She arrived in 1855. She took temporary vows in 1856. In 1858, she wrote to the Pope to tell him a part of the secret she was “authorized” to reveal in that year. In 1860, she was released from her vow of cloister at Carmel by the Pope & returned to mainland Europe.

She entered the Congregation of the Sisters of Compassion in Marseille. Marie, a sister, was appointed as her companion. After a stay in their convent at Cephalonia, Greece, where she & Sister Marie went to open an orphanage. Then, after a short journey at the Carmelite convent of Marseille, she came back to the Sisters of Compassion for a brief time.

In October 1864, she was admitted as a novice, on the condition that she kept her identity secret. But she was recognized. In early 1867, she was officially released from the order. She & her companion then went (following a short stay at Corps & La Salette) to live at Castellamare near Naples in Italy. She was welcomed by the local bishop. She lived there for 17 years & wrote down her secret, including the rule for a future religious foundation.

In 1873, Calvat wrote her personal message again, with the official permission of Sisto Riario Sforza, the Cardinal Archbishop of Naples. Meanwhile, religious orders were being formed at La Salette of Grenoble. These were to provide from pilgrims & spread the message of the vision.

Calvet claimed she had been authorized by the apparition to provide the names of these orders, their rules, & their habits. The 1 for the men was to be named: Order of the Apostles of the Last Days. The 1 for the women was to be named: Order of the Mother of God.

The bishop refused her demands. So she appealed to the Pope. The Pope granted her an audience. She was received by Pope Leo XIII on December 3, 1878. The message was officially published by Calvat herself on November 15, 1879. She got an official ok from Mgr. Salvatore Luigi Zola, Bishop of Lecce near Naples (who had protected & assisted Calvat in his diocese), under the title: Apparition of the Blessed Virgin on the Mountain of La Salette.

Later, the Vatican put this book on the Index of Prohibited Books. The “Secret of La Salette” is actually a series of documents written by Calvat at different stages of her life. The 1851 secret was sent to Pope Pius IX. It warned of “France’s corruption” & a coming “general war.” The 1879 secret was published in Lecce, Italy. It contained the famous line: “Rome will lose the faith & become the seat of the Antichrist.”

Calvat visited the Sanctuary at La Salette for the last time on September 18-19, 1902. In the last months of her life, she lived at Altamura, Italy, where she didn’t reveal her identity. Her identity was revealed only AFTER her death.

She passed away on December 14, 1904, at her home in Altamura, Italy. She was interred in Altamura under a marble monument with a bas-relief picturing the Virgin Mary welcoming the “shepherdess of La Salette” into Heaven.

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