Musical Instruments in the Sephardic Illuminated Bibles

Abstract

Some Iberian Hebrew Bibles produced from the thirteenth to the fifteenth century feature depictions of musical instruments within the full-page illustrations of the Temple implements. These instruments have been found to be similar to those in two contemporary Iberian Christian manuscripts: Cantigas de Santa Maria Codex E and Peter Comestor’s Historia Scholastica. The trumpets and ram’s horn appear next to one another in the Bibles and their appearance together is a unique feature in Jewish art. Also noteworthy is the fact that most of the trumpets have some gold or are entirely of gold or are gilded whereas the Temple’s and Tabernacle’s trumpets were specifically said to be made of pure silver. This article suggests that these two features reflect an attempt on the part of Iberian Jews to associate their music with that of the court of King Alfonso X and his heirs, as the illustrations imply that they and the king had shared musical roots.