“The Circumcision of Jesus“
Author: Unknown
Origin: Unknown
Dating: 18th century
Material: Oil on Canvas
Dimensions (cm): 73 x 88,5
Inv. no.: MNAA1932 / PD0004dep
The excision of the foreskin – popularly known as circumcision – has been practised for over 5.000 years. This procedure is one of the oldest surgical interventions known to man. According to the Bible – following Jewish tradition – the Virgin Mary took Jesus to a priest, to be circumcised, eight days after his birth.
This significant episode in the life of Jesus has been depicted in countless works of art throughout history.
This artwork in particular, depicts Jesus in the arms of Simeon, with Joseph, the prophetess Anna and Mary standing to His right. To the left, one may se an angel holding a basin of bandages and a man holding a candle.
«On the eighth day, when it was time to circumcise the Child, He was named Jesus; the name the angel had given Him before He was conceived. When the time came for the purification rites required by the Law of Moses, Joseph and Mary took Him to Jerusalem to present Him to the Lord; as it is written in the Law of the Lord, “Every firstborn male is to be consecrated to the Lord”». (Luke 2:21-24)
