The Alexander Master, “Gospels: The Three Temptations of Christ in the Desert by Satan,” (Netherlands, 1430), fol. 150r. Illustration. KB, 78 D 38 II. Koninklijke Bibliotheek National Library of the Netherlands. Web (Europeana).
“The Three Temptations of Christ in the Desert by Satan”
The story of Jesus’ “temptation in the desert” is narrated in Luke 4:1–13 and Matthew 4:1-11, and mentioned in passing in Mark 1:12-13, and is not found in the Gospel of John. This particular image illustrates the story as it is told in the Gospel of Matthew and shows Satan first tempting Jesus to turn stones into bread after 40 days of fasting; daring him to jump from the highest point on the temple; and offering him all the kingdoms of the world. Jesus, who is without sin, resists all three temptations.
These images are of the Biblical Satan. Note his slightly different appearance in each: the first with horns, no wings, and a second face in his chest; the second with no horns, wings, and no chest-face; and the third with horns, wings, and no chest-face. It is notable that Satan is never physically described in the Bible, or in this passage; so the depictions of the Devil here, while showing a Biblical narrative, draw on folk-stories of monsters and spirits (like the one in Dürer shown here).
Lorraine Steigner