L’Albero di Iesse nel XII secolo fra Occidente e Oriente: note sul perduto mosaico della basilica della Natività a Betlemme

Abstract

The Tree of Jesse, a depiction of Christ's genealogy based on the prophecy of Isaiah (11, 1-2) and on the Gospel of Matthew (1, 1-17), was one of the subjects of the mosaic decoration of the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem, accomplished in 1169. The work has been entirely destroyed, but it is attested in the counter-facade by Late Medieval and Modern sources. On the basis of this evidence, this paper suggests a reflection both on the iconographic model of the biblical theme, probably of Western origin, and its hypothetical formal features, most likely in line with the Byzantine style of the mosaics which are still visible in the basilica. A tentative reconstruction drawing of the biblical theme completes the analysis.