Roundels with scenes from the life of Abraham Acquired in 1999 with the support of the Kölner Kulturstiftung der Kreissparkasse Köln Cologne, Museum Schnütgen, inv. M 704, M 705 Abraham sends out his servant Southern Netherlands, c. 1520 Stained glass Ø 25 cm Abraham blesses the marriage of Isaac and Rebekah Southern Netherlands, c. 1480–1500 Stained glass Ø 26.7 cm 12 In contrast to the monumental glazing of churches and cathedrals, the small size of roundels and their installation in the windows of town houses allowed for close-up viewing. This led to the detailed painting of pictorial narratives on continuous supporting panes without separating lead cames. In addition to the Old Testament stories of Tobias and Joseph, the eventful life of the patriarch Abraham was also used as narrative material for sequences of images in the format of roundels. The two glass paintings shown here, which probably once belonged to two different cycles, testify to the popularity of the subject over a long period of time. In the pane dating from around 1520, Abraham sends out a servant kneeling before him to find a wife for his son Isaac. In the far background, behind the standing figure of Isaac, the rest of the story is suggested by Rebekah, the future bride, walking towards a group of horsemen with a water jug. The older pane depicts the outcome of the search for a bride. The couple stands before Abraham, who blesses the marriage, in a hilly landscape with houses. The stylistic differences between the two glass paintings in terms of the use of space and the depiction of faces and clothing clearly indicate a development and thus different periods of origin. The temporal and regional classification is complicated by the circulation of certain sequences of images, due on the one hand to the lively trade in small-format stained-glass paintings in the Middle Ages, and on the other to the extensive use of models. A stained-glass painting from around 1480 (Amsterdam, Rijksmuseum, inv. 12243) and a drawing (Rotterdam, Museum Boymans van Beuningen, inv. N 192) show a similar depiction of the marriage of Isaac and Rebekah. However, both works are considered as from the northern Netherlands, possibly Leiden. Cat. Cologne 1903, 38, pl. 9, 578. – Husband 1991, 16–17. Carola Hagnau 72
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