Moutiers Saint-Jean: Cain and Abel`s offerings
Genesis 4
Now the man knew his wife Eve, and she conceived and bore Cain, saying, “I have gained a male child with the help of the Lord.” 2She then bore his brother Abel. Abel became a keeper of sheep, and Cain became a tiller of the soil. 3In the course of time, Cain brought an offering to the Lord from the fruit of the soil; 4and Abel, for his part, brought the choicest of the firstlings of his flock. The Lord paid heed to Abel and his offering, 5but to Cain and his offering He paid no heed. Cain was much distressed and his face fell. 6And the Lord said to Cain,
“Why are you distressed,
And why is your face fallen?
7Surely, if you do right,
There is uplift.
But if you do not do right
Sin couches at the door;
Its urge is toward you,
Yet you can be its master.”
8Cain said to his brother Abel … and when they were in the field, Cain set upon his brother Abel and killed him. 9The Lord said to Cain, “Where is your brother Abel?” And he said, “I do not know. Am I my brother’s keeper?” 10Then He said, “What have you done? Hark, your brother’s blood cries out to Me from the ground! 11Therefore, you shall be more cursed than the ground, which opened its mouth to receive your brother’s blood from your hand. 12If you till the soil, it shall no longer yield its strength to you. You shall become a ceaseless wanderer on earth.”
13Cain said to the Lord, “My punishment is too great to bear! 14Since You have banished me this day from the soil, and I must avoid Your presence and become a restless wanderer on earth—anyone who meets me may kill me!” 15The Lord said to him, “I promise, if anyone kills Cain, sevenfold vengeance shall be taken on him.” And the Lord put a mark on Cain, lest anyone who met him should kill him. 16Cain left the presence of the Lord and settled in the land of Nod, east of Eden.
Let us compare Ghiberti`s approach to those of three northern European artists, of the pre-Renaissance tradition. How do they explain the divine preference of Abel and his offering?
Notice, in particular, the symbolic figures accompanying Cain (left) and Abel. These figures serve a similar function to the two faces of God in another medieval painting.
The murder is the scene that has always elicited most artistic interest. As mentioned above, the question of intent is central. Artists weigh in on this issue, and on Cain`s character in general, through their portrayal of his facial expressions, his dress, his body language and the murder weapon. While Ibn Ezra writes that the identity of the weapon is insignificant, the identity of the weapon is an indication of the commentator`s reading of Cain`s intent. For example, in Meister Bertram`s Grabow altarpiece, we see a satanic Cain, dressed in red, wielding the jawbone of an ass toward the coup de grace against an already bleeding Abel.
His blue robe identifies him with Jesus, according to medieval artistic convention; his gestures, too, identify Abel as the ultimate martyr, beseeching mercy. Cain even tramples Abel, apparently in accordance with the literal interpretation of “vayakom Cain” “Cain stood up on his brother Abel and killed him” (v. 8). But the portrayal of this scene in the Duke of Alba`s illustrated Bible is even more violent: Cain bites Abel`s neck!
As already mentioned, until the Renaissance, most Christian depictions of the murder were based on its christological interpretation as a prefiguration of Jesus` crucifixion by the Jews. It is fascinating, therefore, to note the absence of this story from Michelangelo`s Sistine ceiling. Apparently the theological interpretation did not attract Michelangelo. And while the story continues to appear after the Renaissance, its depiction has usually changed dramatically. It is no longer seen as a condemnation of the Jews, but as a metaphor for human-political struggle and competition. For example, Titian painted the two brothers as equally muscular and similarly clothed men.
Here Cain is cast as a muscular African native, cautiously guarding his prey—Abel`s limp, pale body hanging on a severed tree stump. Thus the biblical story is reinterpreted as a warning against the threat of the “inferior races.” Begas` iconography is based on Michelangelo`s pieta—which profoundly impressed Begas during his sojourn in Italy—but here any hint of pity has disappeared.
Michelangelo, Pieta, 1498-99
For example, in this scene from the 12th century mosaics of Monreale, Sicily, Abel`s blood is personified in the little man, whose voice cries out from the earth. Conventional Byzantine art, shows God, without emotion, gesturing Cain toward his exile, while Cain lamely lifts a hand in defense.
The painting is suffused with anguish: Adam`s face and hands reveal his helplessness as the horrified Cain flees. Eve mourns her son with bowed head and body. In the very same period, the English playwright, Lord Byron, cast Cain as a tragic hero. Interest in the emotions of the story`s characters can be seen in the twin statues of Gustinus Ambrosi, a 20th century Austrian sculptor. The statues can be understood in various manners:
Is the statue on the left the contrite Cain or the injured Abel? Is the statue on the right the reverent Abel, after his offering has been accepted, or is it the rejected Cain, trying to understand his rejection. Victim and criminal seem to be aspects of the same individual.
And some say that Cain said to Abel: Let us divide up the world.
And he said: Yes.
Abel took his flocks and Cain his land to till and they stipulated that this would be a quit claim. But after Abel took his flock he began to graze them (on Cain`s land) and Cain began chasing him/them from hill to valley and from valley to hill, until they grabbed one another. Abel was overpowering Cain, who fell beneath him.
When Cain saw this, he began to plead: Abel, my brother, do me no harm.out of pity, (Abel) freed him, but when he stood up, he killed him, as it is said: And Cain arose – from having fallen.
After killing him, he thought: I will flee from my father and mother, who will ask only me about him, since there is no one else in the world. At once, the Holy One, Blessed be He appeared to him and said: You can flee from your parents, but not from Me.