In the Beginning Was the Word: Medieval Gospel Illumination October 21, 2011

The four Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, among the most well-known texts in the Bible, offer a powerful account of the life of Christ and form the basis of the religion that his disciples founded. The Gospels were considered of paramount importance and thus richly decorated throughout the Middle Ages. Drawing primarily from the Getty Museum's permanent collection, this exhibition includes examples of Armenian, Ethiopian, and Byzantine as well as Western European manuscript illumination. It examines the major forms of decoration associated with the Gospels, including portraits of the four Evangelists, and explores the varied approaches to illustrating the life of Christ.