Skip to main content Skip to main navigation menu Skip to site footer
  • Register
  • Login
  • Language
    • English
    • Français (France)
    • Język Polski
  • Menu
  • Home
  • Current
  • Archives
  • Announcements
  • About
    • About the Journal
    • Submissions
    • Editorial Team
    • Privacy Statement
    • Contact
  • Register
  • Login
  • Language:
  • English
  • Français (France)
  • Język Polski

Études et Travaux

Faces of Evil in Nubian Wall-Painting – An Overview
  • Home
  • /
  • Faces of Evil in Nubian Wall-Painting – An Overview
  1. Home /
  2. Archives /
  3. No. 32 (2019) /
  4. Articles

Faces of Evil in Nubian Wall-Painting – An Overview

Authors

  • Karel C. Innemée University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam / University of Divinity, Melbourne
  • Dobrochna Zielińska Institute of Archaeology, University of Warsaw, Warsaw https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1870-2994

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.12775/EtudTrav.32.009

Keywords

Nubia, Christian iconography, mural painting, Devil, warrior saints, Faras, Old Dongola, Banganarti

Abstract

In Christian wall-paintings in Nubia a recurring theme is the struggle between Good and Evil. In this article an overview is given of the various ways in which Evil is depicted or personified, ranging from animals to humans and the hybrid ways in which Satan and his helpers are represented. These different ways have been inspired by sources from a canonical biblical, apocryphal and mythological character.

References

Ainalis, Z.D. 2018: From Hades to Hell, Christian Visions of the Underworld (2nd–5th centuries CE), [in:] Ekroth, G., Nilsson, I. (Eds), Round Trip to Hades in the Eastern Mediterranean Tradition: Visits to the Underworld from Antiquity to Byzantium, Leiden-Boston, 271–286

Borgeaud, P. 2010: ‘Silent Entrails’: The Devil, His Demons, and Christian Theories Regarding Ancient Religions, HistRel 50/1, 80–95

Brenk, B. 1990: Teufel, [in:] Kirschbaum, E. (Ed.), Lexikon der christlichen Ikonographie 4, Rome-Freiburg-Basel-Vienna, 295–300

Clédat, J. 1904: Le monastère et la nécropole de Baouit, MIFAO 12, Cairo

Discourse concerning Hades: https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Discourse_to_the_Greeks_concerning_Hades (accessed January 10, 2019)

Godlewski, W. 1982: Some Comments on the Wall Painting of Christ from Old Dongola, [in:] Plumley, J.M. (Ed.), Nubian Studies, Proceedings of the Symposium for Nubian Studies, Sellwyn College, Cambridge 1978, Warminster, 95–99

Godlewski, W. 1995: The Late Period in Nubian Art – from the Middle of 13th to the End of 14th Centuries, [in:] Gundlach, R., Kropp, M., Leibundgut, A. (Eds), Sudan Past and Present / Der Sudan in Vergangenheit und Gegenwart, Nordostafrikanisch-Westasiatische Studien 1, Frankfurt a/Main, 37–63

Godlewski, W. 2008: Bishops and Kings. The Official Program of the Pachoras (Faras) Cathedrals, [in:] Between the Cataracts. Proceedings of the 11th Conference for Nubian Studies, Warsaw University, 27 August – 2 September 2006, Part One, Main Papers, PAM Supplement Series 2.1, Warsaw, 263–282

Godlewski, W. 2013. Dongola – ancient Tungul. Archaeological guide, PCMA Archaeological Guides 1, Warsaw

Górecki, T. 1980: Z problematyki ikonografii świętych wojowników w malarstwie ściennym katedry w Faras, RMNW 24, 173–259

Griffith, F.Ll. 1928: Oxford Excavations in Nubia: The Church of Abd el-Qadir near Second Cataract, AAALiv 15, 63–82

Grotowski, P. 2010: Arms and Armour of the Warrior Saints. Tradition and Innovation in Byzantine Iconography (843–1261), The Medieval Mediterranean 87, Leiden

Hennecke, E., Schneemelcher, W. 1968: Neutestamentliche Apokryphen I, Evangelien, Tübingen

Hill, C.E. 1989: Hades of Hippolytus or Tartarus of Tertullian? The Authorship of the Fragment De Universo, VigChr 43/2, 105–126

Innemée, K.C. 2015: The Doors of Deir a-Surian Commissioned by Moses of Nisibis: Some Observations on the Occasion of their Restoration, [in:] Doerfler, M., Fiano, E., Smith, K. (Eds), Syriac Encounters, Papers from the Sixth North American Syriac Symposium, Duke University, 26–29 June 2011, Early Christian Studies 20, Leuven, 193–214

Innemée, K.C. 2016: Monks and bishops in Old Dongola, and what their costumes can tell us, [in:] Łajtar, A., Obłuski, A., Zych, I. (Eds), Aegyptus et Nubia Christiana. The Włodzimierz Godlewski Jubilee Volume on the Occasion of his 70th Birthday, Warsaw, 411–434

Innemée, K.C. 2019: A Man in a Vessel, Once More, EtudTrav XXXII, 111–120

Jakobielski, S. 1979: Dongola 1976, EtudTrav XI, 229–244

Jakobielski, S., Martens-Czarnecka, M., Łaptaś, M., Mierzejewska, B., Rostkowska, B. 2017: Pachoras, Faras: The Wall Paintings from the Cathedrals of Aetios, Paulos and Petros, PAM Monograph Series 4, Warsaw

Jewish Encyclopedia: http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com (accessed January 10, 2019)

Kartsonis, A.D. 1986: Anastasis, the Making of an Image, Princeton

Kulik, A. 2013: How the Devil Got His Hooves and Horns: The Origin of the Motif and the Implied Demonology of ‘3 Baruch’, Numen 60/2–3, 195–229

Louvre: https://www.louvre.fr/en/recherche-globale (accessed January 10, 2019)

Łajtar, A. 1996: Varia Nubica IV: Das älteste nubische Epitaph mit dem Gebet vom sogenannten Typus Euchologion Mega?, ZPE 113, 101–108

Łajtar, A. 2003: Catalogue of the Greek Inscriptions in the National Museum at Khartoum (I. Khartoum Greek), OLA 122, Leuven-Paris-Dudley MA

Łajtar, A. 2009: Varia Nubica XII-XIX, JJP XXXIX, 83–119

Łajtar, A. forthcoming: The Late Christian Pilgrimage Centre at Bagnanarti. The Evidence of Inscriptions, JJP-Suppl., Warsaw

Łaptaś, M. 1999: Comments on Wall Paintings from House A in Old Dongola, [in:] Emmel, S., Krause, M. (Eds), Ägypten und Nubien in späntikier und christlicher Zeit. Akten des 6. Internationalen Koptologenkongresses, Münster, 20.-26. Juli 1996, vol. I, SKCO 6, Wiesbaden, 230–237

Łaptaś, M. 2016: Archangel Raphael as protector, demon tamer, guide and healer. Some aspects of the Archangel’s activities in Nubian painting, [in:] Łajtar, A., Obłuski, A., Zych, I. (Eds), Aegyptus et Nubia Christiana. The Włodzimierz Godlewski Jubilee Volume on the Occasion of his 70th Birthday, Warsaw, 411–434

Łaptaś, M. 2019: The Position of the Archangel Michael within the Celestial Hierarchy: Some Aspects of the Manifestation of his Cult in Nubian Painting, [in:] Gilhus, I.S., Tsakos, A., Wright, M.C. (Eds), The Archangel Michael in Africa: History, Cult, and Persona, London, 95–108

Maguire, H. 2018: Why did Hades become beautiful in Byzantine Art?, [in:] Ekroth, G., Nilsson, I. (Eds), Round trip to Hades in the Eastern Mediterranean Tradition: Visits to the Underworld from Antiquity to Byzantium, Cultural Interactions in the Mediterranean 2, Leiden-Boston, 304–321

Mango, C. 1992: Diabolus Byzantinus, [in:] Homo Byzantinus, Papers in Honor of Alexander Kazhdan, DOP 46, Washington DC, 215–223

Martens-Czarnecka, M. 2001: Wall Paintings Discovered in Old Dongola, [in:] Jakobielski, S., Scholz, P.O. (Eds), Dongola-Studien. 35 Jahre polnischer Forschungen im Zentrum des makuritischen Reiches, Bibliotheca nubica et aethiopica 7, Warsaw-Wiesbaden, 253–284

Martens-Czarnecka, M. 2011: The Wall Paintings from the Monastery on Kom H in Dongola, Dongola 3, Nubia III, Warsaw

Mauskopf Deliyannis, D. 2014: Ravenna in Late Antiquity, Cambridge

McMahon, A. 2009: The Lion, the King and the Cage: Late Chalcolithic Iconography and Ideology in Northern Mesopotamia, Iraq 71, 115–124

Metmuseum: https://www.metmuseum.org (accessed October 23, 2019)

Moorsel, P. van, Jacquet, J., Schneider, H. 1975: The Central Church at Abdallah Nirqi, The Netherlands excavations in Nubia, Abu Simbel North 1962–1964, Leiden

Morgan, L. 1995: Of Animals and Men: the Symbolic Parallel, [in:] Morris, Ch. (Ed.), Klados: Essays in Honour of J.N. Coldstream, BICS Supplement 63, London, 171–184

Nola, A.M. di 1987: Il diavolo. Le forme, la storia, le vicende di Satana e la sua universal e malefica presenza presso tutti i popoli, dall’antichità ai nostri giorni, Roma

O’Leary, L. de 1974: The Saints of Egypt in the Coptic Calendar, Amsterdam

Ouspensky, L. 1978: Theology of the Icon, Crestwood NY

Ravenna: http://03varvara.wordpress.com/2011/08/25/unknown-artist-christ-the-warriorsacellum-archiepiscopale-archiepiscopal-chapel-ravenna-italy-6th-century/ (accessed January 10, 2019)

Ryś, A. 2013: Przedstawienia świętych wojowników w malarstwie nubijskim, unpublished BA thesis, University of Warsaw, Warsaw

Sackho-Autissier, A. 2010: Le thème de l’ennemi vaincu dans l’art méroitique, [in:] Baud, M. (Ed.), Méroé, un empire sur le Nil, Paris, 182–185

Schnackenburg, R., Rahner, K. 1986: Teufel, [in:] Lexikon für Theologie und Kirche 10, Freiburg, 2–4

Stewart, P. 2012: The Equestrian Statue of Marcus Aurelius, [in:] Ackeren, M. van (Ed.), A Companion to Marcus Aurelius, Blackwell Companions to the Ancient World 186, Hoboken NJ, 264–277

Vantini, G. 1990: The Faras ‘Golgotha’ and the Apocrypha, [in:] Scholz, P.O., Müller, C.D. (Eds), Nubica I/II, Cologne, 653–659

Walter, C. 2003: The Warrior Saints in Byzantine Art and Tradition, Aldershot

Walters, C.C. 1989: Christian Paintings from Tebtunis, JEA 75, 191–208

Waszink, J.H. 1933: Tertullian. De Anima mit Einleitung, Übersetzung und Kommentar, Amsterdam

Woźniak, M. 2013: Iconographie des souverains et des dignitaires de la nubie chrétienne : Les vêtements d’apparat, unpublished PhD thesis, Université Paris-Sorbonne, Paris

Woźniak, M. 2016: The chronology of the eastern chapels in the Upper Church at Banganarti. Some observations on the genesis of “apse portraits” in Nubian royal iconography, [in:] Łajtar, A., Obłuski, A., Zych, I. (Eds), Aegyptus et Nubia Christiana. The Włodzimierz Godlewski Jubilee Volume on the Occasion of his 70th Birthday, Warsaw, 629–646

Zielińska, D. 2010: The iconographical program in Nubian churches: progress report based on a new reconstruction project, [in:] Godlewski, W., Łajtar, A. (Eds), Between the Cataracts, Proceedings of the 11th Conference of Nubian Studies Warsaw University, 27 August–2 September 2006, PAM Supplement Series 2, part 2, fasc. 2, Warsaw, 643–651

Żurawski, B. 1999: Medieval Nubian Regalia: Innovation versus Tradition, [in:] Welsby, D.A. (Ed.), Recent Research in Kushite History and Archaeology. Proceedings of the 8th International Conference for Meroitic Studies, London, 223–234

Żurawski, B. 2012: St. Raphael Church I at Banganarti, Mid-Sixth to Mid-Eleventh Century. An Introduction to the Site and the Epoch, Gdańsk Archaeological Museum African Reports 10, Monograph Series 2, Banganarti 1, Gdańsk-Włocławek

Żurawski, B. with appendices by Łajtar, A., Piasecki, K., Łaptaś, M., Woźniak, M., Osypińska, M., Cedro, A. 2014: Kings and Pilgrims: Saint Raphael Church II at Banganarti, Mid-Eleventh to Mid-Eighteenth Century, Nubia V, Banganarti 2, Warsaw

Études et Travaux

Downloads

  • PDF

Published

2019-12-31

How to Cite

1.
INNEMÉE, Karel C. and ZIELIŃSKA, Dobrochna. Faces of Evil in Nubian Wall-Painting – An Overview. Études et Travaux. Online. 31 December 2019. No. 32, pp. 121-144. [Accessed 5 July 2025]. DOI 10.12775/EtudTrav.32.009.
  • ISO 690
  • ACM
  • ACS
  • APA
  • ABNT
  • Chicago
  • Harvard
  • IEEE
  • MLA
  • Turabian
  • Vancouver
Download Citation
  • Endnote/Zotero/Mendeley (RIS)
  • BibTeX

Issue

No. 32 (2019)

Section

Articles

Stats

Number of views and downloads: 1228
Number of citations: 1

Search

Search

Browse

  • Browse Author Index
  • Issue archive

User

User

Current Issue

  • Atom logo
  • RSS2 logo
  • RSS1 logo

Information

  • For Readers
  • For Authors
  • For Librarians

Newsletter

Subscribe Unsubscribe

Language

  • English
  • Français (France)
  • Język Polski

Tags

Search using one of provided tags:

Nubia, Christian iconography, mural painting, Devil, warrior saints, Faras, Old Dongola, Banganarti
Up

Akademicka Platforma Czasopism

Najlepsze czasopisma naukowe i akademickie w jednym miejscu

apcz.umk.pl

Partners

  • Akademia Ignatianum w Krakowie
  • Akademickie Towarzystwo Andragogiczne
  • Fundacja Copernicus na rzecz Rozwoju Badań Naukowych
  • Instytut Historii im. Tadeusza Manteuffla Polskiej Akademii Nauk
  • Instytut Kultur Śródziemnomorskich i Orientalnych PAN
  • Instytut Tomistyczny
  • Karmelitański Instytut Duchowości w Krakowie
  • Ministerstwo Kultury i Dziedzictwa Narodowego
  • Państwowa Akademia Nauk Stosowanych w Krośnie
  • Państwowa Akademia Nauk Stosowanych we Włocławku
  • Państwowa Wyższa Szkoła Zawodowa im. Stanisława Pigonia w Krośnie
  • Polska Fundacja Przemysłu Kosmicznego
  • Polskie Towarzystwo Ekonomiczne
  • Polskie Towarzystwo Ludoznawcze
  • Towarzystwo Miłośników Torunia
  • Towarzystwo Naukowe w Toruniu
  • Uniwersytet im. Adama Mickiewicza w Poznaniu
  • Uniwersytet Komisji Edukacji Narodowej w Krakowie
  • Uniwersytet Mikołaja Kopernika
  • Uniwersytet w Białymstoku
  • Uniwersytet Warszawski
  • Wojewódzka Biblioteka Publiczna - Książnica Kopernikańska
  • Wyższe Seminarium Duchowne w Pelplinie / Wydawnictwo Diecezjalne „Bernardinum" w Pelplinie

© 2021- Nicolaus Copernicus University Accessibility statement Shop