object
Tablets of the Law
Two stone tables of the Decalogue—rectangular slabs with commandment hints.
Iconography & biography archive
Era: 13th century BC (biblical narrative) · Egypt, SinaiFeast: September 4 (some traditions)Category: Old Testament
Sources: Exodus–Deuteronomy; Josephus; Vulgate Exodus 34:29–35 on “horns” of light.
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Browse depictions4 works
Selected depiction
Moses (Michelangelo)
San Pietro in Vincoli, Rome
Old Testament
Moses
Moshe
Feast: September 4 (some traditions)
Intermediate difficulty
of Israel—descends Sinai with tablets and, in Michelangelo’s famous misreading, horns of radiance.
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Iconographic Attributes
Symbols that identify this saint in sacred art
object
Tablets of the Law
Two stone tables of the Decalogue—rectangular slabs with commandment hints.
symbol
Prophet's Beard
Long white beard of venerable prophet—paired with Aaron only when both in narrative.
object
Staff
Lily staff or prophet's rod
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Iconographic Field Guide
How to read Moses in paintings, sculpture, and altarpieces
Horns are rays from the Hebrew qaran interpreted as cornuta in Latin—artists literalized them until modern scholarship clarified. Tablets are always two unless Moses is mid-narrative breaking them. Burning bush appears in cycle scenes, not usually portrait attributes.
symbol
Prophet's Beard
Long white beard of venerable prophet—paired with Aaron only when both in narrative.
object
Staff
Lily staff or prophet's rod
Typical vesture
- —robes
Color conventions
Artists often dress Moses in red, blue—these hues are not rigid rules but long-standing conventions that help recognition in polyptychs and chapel cycles.
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Visual Gallery
Selected depictions of Moses from verified sources
San Pietro in Vincoli, Rome
Marble sculpture
Moses (Michelangelo)
Michelangelo
Gemäldegalerie, Berlin
Oil on canvas
Moses with the Ten Commandments
Rembrandt
Dura-Europos synagogue (Yale University Art Gallery)
Fresco
Moses receiving the Law
Wikimedia Commons
Painting
Moses with Tablets (Oppenheim)
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Biographical Archive
Life, witness, and historical framing
anchors Old Testament typology: Passover lamb, bronze serpent, and Sinai law prefigure Christ. In the Sistine chapel he glares with horns; in Gothic glass he simply carries law. Read translation history before you laugh.
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Visual Recognition Guide
Clues ordered for museum identification
1.Tablets of the Law
The Ten Commandments
2.Horns or rays of light on head
From Exodus 34:29–35 (Vulgate “horns”)
3.Long beard
Prophet of great age
4.Burning bush (in narrative scenes)
Theophany at Horeb
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Patronage and Devotion
Why communities invoke this figure
lawyersmountaineers
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Notes from the Archive
Scholarly curiosities and cult details
- ✝Michelangelo's Moses in Rome popularized the horned depiction
At a glance
- Feast
- September 4 (some traditions)
- Category
- Old Testament
- Difficulty
- Intermediate
- Patron of
- lawyersmountaineers
Life & legacy
Moses anchors Old Testament typology: Passover lamb, bronze serpent, and Sinai law prefigure Christ. In the Sistine chapel he glares with horns; in Gothic glass he simply carries law. Read translation history before you laugh.
Curiosities
- Michelangelo's Moses in Rome popularized the horned depiction
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