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Christ treading on the beasts

Christ treading on the beasts is a subject found in Late Antique and Early Medieval art, though it is never common. It is a variant of the "Christ in Triumph" subject of the resurrected Christ, and shows a standing Christ with his feet on animals, often holding a cross-staff which may have a spear-head at the bottom of its shaft, or a staff or spear with a cross-motif on a pennon. The iconography derives from Biblical texts, in particular Psalm 91 (90):13: "The asp and the basilisk you will trample under foot/you will tread on the lion and the dragon." This was interpreted as a reference to Christ defeating and triumphing over Satan.

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Christian Iconography

Category: Religion

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