Genealogical Tree of Jesus Christ
The series of frescoes in the vault of the nave of the Church of St. Joseph in Krzeszów represents “the Genealogical Tree of Jesus Christ”. It begins above the organ gallery with the image of Abraham and Isaac lying on a trunk – a symbolic reference to the beginning of the genealogy. It ends on the walls of the presbytery, where Willmann depicted the apostles – Peter and Paul – symbolising the Universal Church.
There is close collaboration in the case of the vaulting, as lunettes – triangular clearings – were introduced to illuminate the vaulting. The surface of the lunettes was then covered with polychromes.
Michael Willman modelled the composition of the vault on the Sistine Chapel. The vault has 5 bays:
- The first bay depicts Abraham performing a sacrifice. In the lunettes: on the left David playing the harp, on the right Aaron with a ladle.
- The second bay depicts a group of seven people related to St Joseph. In the lunettes: on the left Mataniah (Matan) with the Torah rolled up, on the right Matthias (Matat).
- The third bay shows Zechariah and his wife Elizabeth looking at their son John the Baptist. In the lunettes: on the left is depicted Jacob, the father of St Joseph, on the right Sobha.
- The fourth bay shows the kneeling figures of Joachim and Anne, grateful for having been blessed at a late age with the birth of Mary. In the lunettes two apostles related to St Joseph: on the left Jude Thaddeus, on the right James the Lesser.
- The fifth bay shows the Holy Family: Jesus, Mary and Joseph. In the lunettes two brothers of the Apostles: on the left James the Greater, on the right John the Evangelist.
Gigapixels
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