7.0387 Rs: Moses (5/116)

Elaine Brennan (EDITORS@BROWNVM.BITNET)
Mon, 10 Jan 1994 19:54:11 EST

Humanist Discussion Group, Vol. 7, No. 0387. Monday, 10 Jan 1994.


(1) Date: Sun, 2 Jan 1994 11:56:08 -0500 (EST) (73 lines)
From: mccarty@epas.utoronto.ca (W. McCarty)
Subject: horny Moses

(2) Date: Sun, 2 Jan 1994 19:51:50 -0800 (PST) (12 lines)
From: AHARRIS - Alan Harris <VCSPC005@VAX.CSUN.EDU>
Subject: RE: 7.0378 Rs: Fonts; Horns (2/19)

(3) Date: Sun, 02 Jan 1994 23:43:52 CST (8 lines)
From: theobible@VAX.STMARYTX.EDU
Subject: RE: 7.0378 Rs: Fonts; Horns (2/19)

(4) Date: Mon, 3 Jan 94 16:20:55 -0600 (12 lines)
From: carlg@ralph.txswu.edu (Dr. Glenda Carl)
Subject: Horny Moses

(5) Date: Tue, 04 Jan 94 10:06:11 GMT (11 lines)
From: Virginia Knight <ZZAASVK@cms.mcc.ac.uk>
Subject: Moses

(1) --------------------------------------------------------------------
Date: Sun, 2 Jan 1994 11:56:08 -0500 (EST)
From: mccarty@epas.utoronto.ca (W. McCarty)
Subject: horny Moses

This in response to Kessler on Moses' horns.

Lars Martin Fosse, in a separate note, reminds me of the following:

I vaguely seem to remember the following explanation: When St. Hieronymus
translated the Bible, he made a mistake when translating the episode where
Moses descends from the mountain with the Law in his hands. I do not have
the Bible at hand here in my office, but I think it says (in Hebrew) that
he descended "with a resplendent (or shining) face". St. Hieronymus,
however, misread the Hebrew and translated "facie cornuta", or "with a
horned face". Michelangelo evidently follows the Latin vulgate.

I will not vouch for the correctness of this explanation, but maybe
it can be confirmed. If it is true, it is probably the only time in the
history of art that a philological gaffe has contributed to a masterpiece.

Gaffe it may be, but an interesting question remains: why did the
attribution of horns stick? Sometimes an accident (is there such thing
as PURE coincidence?) happens to produce a result congruent to an
existing pattern. Perhaps the gaffer was well educated with respect to
ancient lore.

I'm suggesting, then, that Moses' horns are cognate with the
cuckold's, not derived from them. Both represent a form of power.
Remember that Moses died mysteriously. I borrow the following from a
dissertation that will thankfully never see print -- but which may
have a few bright spots:


The author of Deuteronomy comments that at death "his eye was not
dimmed, nor his natural force abated" (34:7). This "natural force"
(Heb. lecha, moisture, freshness) is in its adjectival form used of
trees (Gen 30:37; Ezek 17:24; 20:47), fruit (Num 6:3), and animal
tendons (Judg 16:7-8). For the meaning of this 'greenness' or 'moisture,'
see Onians, <t>The Origins of European Thought</t> 272-4, 287-91, etc.
William Foxwell Albright points out that the cognate of lecha in
Ugaritic means "life-force," as in the epic of Dan'el ("The 'Natural
Force of Moses' in the Light of Ugaritic", <t>Bulletin of the
American Schools of Oriental Research</t>, 94 (1944): 32-5. It might be
argued, then, that at the climax of his Wilderness journey Moses, having
metaphorically taken possession of the Promised Land, suddenly dies
full of that form of life-energy most characteristic of the upper or
paradisal level of existence.

After noting that Moses' horns come from a mistranslation of the
Hebrew into Latin facies cornuta, Manfred Lurker comments that "The
artistic representation of this misunderstanding in the Vulgate
speaks first, however, correctly for the expressive power of the
ancient symbol, so that one still gives credence to the horned state
of Moses, perceiving the power that he derived from God"
(<t>Woerterbuch biblischer Bilder und Symbole</t>, s.v. Horn; see his
brief bibliography). Supporting NE materials are abundant; see, for
example, Othmar Keel, <t>The Symbolism of the Biblical World</t>, 86,
146, 206, 212, 258.

What does all this have to do with humanities computing? Allow me to
play devil's advocate with a former self. Such an exchange might be
more appropriate to another group, but would it ever take place
anywhere else than in this electronic piazza?

Happy New Year!


WM
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Willard McCarty / Centre for Computing in the Humanities
University of Toronto / mccarty@epas.utoronto.ca
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-

(2) --------------------------------------------------------------34----
Date: Sun, 2 Jan 1994 19:51:50 -0800 (PST)
From: AHARRIS - Alan Harris <VCSPC005@VAX.CSUN.EDU>
Subject: RE: 7.0378 Rs: Fonts; Horns (2/19)

the horns on Michaelangelo's Moses resulted from a mistranslation in the
Septuaginta of "karne' or" --rays of light. "keren," even in Modern Hebrew
comes out variously as either "horn" or "ray" soooooo M. was just following
the Vulgate's rendereing of the already screwed up Greek translation, I
believe.
ach


Alan C. Harris, Ph. D. telno: off:
Professor, Communication/Linguistics 818-885-2853/2874
Speech Communication Department hm:
California State University, Northridge 818-780-8872
SPCH CSUN fax: 818-885-2663
Northridge, CA 91330-8257
Internet: AHARRIS@VAX.CSUN.EDU




(3) --------------------------------------------------------------------

Date: Sun, 02 Jan 1994 23:43:52 CST
From: theobible@VAX.STMARYTX.EDU
Subject: RE: 7.0378 Rs: Fonts; Horns (2/19)

Jascha, I believe Michelangelo's horned Moses was simply an older convention
occasioned by Jerome's translation of Hebrew qarnaim ("rays" or "horns") as
cornua. I don't believe it had anything to do with cuckoldry, simply a
mistranslation that became classical. Charlie Miller--St. Mary's U of Texas
(4) --------------------------------------------------------------21----
Date: Mon, 3 Jan 94 16:20:55 -0600
From: carlg@ralph.txswu.edu (Dr. Glenda Carl)
Subject: Horny Moses


The statue of Moses has horns because Moses was a Jew--for the Middle Ages,
a devil. QED.

Glenda Carl
Southwestern University
Georgetown TX
carlg@ralph.txswu.edu
(5) --------------------------------------------------------------23----
Date: Tue, 04 Jan 94 10:06:11 GMT
From: Virginia Knight <ZZAASVK@cms.mcc.ac.uk>
Subject: Moses

Moses was often represented with horns in the mediaeval/Renaissance period.
This arose from a misunderstanding of representations of him with rays of
light streaming from his head, as he descended from Mount Sinai after meeting
the Lord.

Virginia Knight
University of Manchester