Master of the Rabbula Gospels
The Ascension of Christ

586
Parchment, 13.4 x 10.6 in. (34 x 27 cm.)
Biblioteca Medicea-Laurenziana

This is among the earliest examples of what Dewald calls the "Oriental" type of Ascension image. The upper half has Christ in a mandorla escorted by four angels and iconography adapted from the first chapter of Ezekiel (The multitude of eyes on the red wings of the Seraph are a detail from Revelation 4:6.). And the lower half features Mary and the eleven disciples plus St. Paul. It is described in some detail in our page on Ascension iconography.

Read more about images of the Ascension.

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• Iconography of the Ascension
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Source: this page at Wikimedia Commons.