2-740-830 - Heritage Art/Heritage Images

Simeon Kneels in Front of Mary and Jesus After Recognizing Them, from a Mirror of Holiness (Mir’at al-quds) of Father Jerome Xavier, 1602-1604. Simeon had heard a prophecy that he would encounter the Messiah with his mother in the temple at Jerusalem. This painting depicts his moment of recognition that the prophecy had come true. The temple is populated by Jewish teachers and scholars, and a number of unusual visual elements. A dragon-headed vase is set by the stairs; curled dogs and a kneeling figure are carved like bas-reliefs into the pillars of the temple, which also has niches for vases. The form of the temple itself seems to be an imaginative combination of Hindu temple and Mughal palace architecture.