Palestine - Pretre (Jewish Priest) (Plate 10)

Description

This engraving reimagines the figure of the "Jewish Priest" who served in the Temple in Jerusalem in Hebrew tradition within the aesthetics of a 19th-century French sacred history atlas. The costume typology seen in such engravings is not based on direct archaeological findings, but rather on iconographic reconstructions made in 19th-century Europe based on descriptions of the priestly order in Old Testament texts, particularly the books of Exodus and Leviticus. The long, patterned robe, sash, and plain headdress, unlike the "Jewish High Priest," represent the everyday ceremonial attire of lower-ranking priests within the Temple hierarchy. This engraving typifies the desire in the West during the 18th and 19th centuries to "transform Sacred History into a pictorial-archaeological scene."