Cernunnos
Cernunnos is the conventional name given in Celtic studies to depictions of the "horned god" of Celtic polytheism. Cernunnos was a Celtic god of fertility, life, animals, wealth, and the underworld. The name itself is only attested once, on the 1st-century Pillar of the Boatmen, but he appears all over Gaul, and among the Celtiberians. Cernunnos is depicted with the antlers of a stag, seated cross-legged, associated with animals, and holding or wearing torcs. This deity is known from over 50 examples in the Gallo-Roman period, mostly in north-eastern Gaul.
Moses
Menorah (Temple)
The menorah is described in the Bible as the seven-lamp ancient Hebrew lampstand made of pure gold and used in the portable sanctuary set up by Moses in the wilderness and later in the Temple in Jerusalem. Fresh olive oil of the purest quality was burned daily to light its lamps. The menorah has been a symbol of Judaism since ancient times and is the emblem on the coat of arms of the modern state of Israel.
Torah
Torah has a range of meanings. It can most specifically mean the first five books (Pentateuch) of the 24 books of the Tanakh, and it is usually printed with the rabbinic commentaries. It can mean the continued narrative from the Book of Genesis to the end of the Tanakh (Chronicles), and it can even mean the totality of Jewish teaching, culture and practice, whether derived from biblical texts or later rabbinic writings. Common to all these meanings, Torah consists of the origin of Jewish peoplehood: their call into being by God, their trials and tribulations, and their covenant with their God, which involves following a way of life embodied in a set of moral and religious obligations and civil laws.
Aaron's rod
Aaron's rod refers to any of the staves carried by Moses's brother, Aaron, in the Torah. The Bible tells how, along with Moses's rod, Aaron's rod was endowed with miraculous power during the Plagues of Egypt that preceded the Exodus. There are two occasions where the Bible tells of the rod's power.
Zipporah
Zipporah or Tzipora is mentioned in the Book of Exodus as the wife of Moses, and the daughter of Reuel/Jethro, the priest or prince of Midian. In the Book of Chronicles, two of her descendants are mentioned: Shebuel, son of Gershom, and Rehabiah, son of Eliezer.
Burning bush
The burning bush is an object described by the Book of Exodus as being located on Mount Horeb. According to the narrative, the bush was on fire, but was not consumed by the flames, hence the name. In the biblical narrative, the burning bush is the location at which Moses was appointed by Yahweh (God) to lead the Israelites out of Egypt and into Canaan.
Moses (Michelangelo)
The Moses is a sculpture by the Italian High Renaissance artist Michelangelo Buonarroti, housed in the church of San Pietro in Vincoli in Rome. Commissioned in 1505 by Pope Julius II for his tomb, it depicts the biblical figure Moses with horns on his head, based on a description in chapter 34 of Exodus in the Vulgate, the Latin translation of the Bible used at that time.
Targum Onkelos
Targum Onkelos, תרגום אונקלוס, is the Jewish Babylonian Aramaic targum ("translation") of the Torah. However, its early origins may have been Western, in Israel.
Holy of Holies
The Holy of Holies is a term in the Hebrew Bible which refers to the inner sanctuary of the Tabernacle where God's presence appeared. The area was defined by four pillars which held up the veil of the covering, under which the Ark of the Covenant was held above the floor. The Ark according to Hebrew Scripture contained the Ten Commandments, which were given by God to Moses on Mount Sinai. King Solomon built the Temple in Jerusalem, where the Ark of the Covenant was supposed to be kept.
Terumah (parsha)
Terumah, Terumoh, Terimuh, or Trumah is the nineteenth weekly Torah portion in the annual Jewish cycle of Torah reading and the seventh in the Book of Exodus. The parashah tells of God's instructions to make the Tabernacle and its furnishings. The parashah constitutes Exodus 25:1–27:19. It is made up of 4,692 Hebrew letters, 1,145 Hebrew words, 96 verses, and 155 lines in a Torah Scroll. Jews in the Diaspora read it the nineteenth Sabbath after Simchat Torah, generally in February and rarely in early March.
Mosaic authorship
Mosaic authorship is the Jewish, Christian and Muslim tradition that Moses was the author of the Torah, the first five books of the Hebrew Bible/Old Testament. The books do not name any author, as authorship was not considered important by the society that produced them, and it was only after Jews came into intense contact with author-centric Hellenistic culture in the late Second Temple period that the rabbis began to find authors for their scriptures. The tradition that Moses was this author probably began with the law-code of Deuteronomy, and was then gradually extended until Moses, as the central character, came to be regarded not just as the mediator of law but as author of both laws and narrative.
Old City (Bern)
The Old City is the medieval city center of Bern, Switzerland. Built on a narrow hill surrounded on three sides by the river Aare, its compact layout has remained essentially unchanged since its construction during the twelfth to the fifteenth century. Despite a major fire in 1405, after which much of the city was rebuilt in sandstone, and substantial construction efforts in the eighteenth century, Bern's old city has retained its medieval character.
Kindlifresserbrunnen
The Kindlifresserbrunnen is a fountain at the Kornhausplatz in Bern, Switzerland. It is one of the Old City of Bern's fountains from the 16th century.
Gerechtigkeitsbrunnen (Bern)
The Gerechtigkeitsbrunnen is a 16th-century fountain in the Gerechtigkeitsgasse in the Old City of Bern, Switzerland. It is the only Bernese fountain to retain all original design elements, and is listed as a cultural heritage of national significance.
Hybrid beasts in folklore
Hybrid beasts, i.e. creatures composed of parts from different animals, appear in the folklore of a variety of cultures as legendary creatures.
Horned deity
Deities depicted with horns or antlers are found in many different religions across the world.
Serpents in the Bible
Serpents are referred to in both the Hebrew Bible and the New Testament. The symbol of a serpent or snake played important roles in religious and cultural life of ancient Egypt, Canaan, Mesopotamia and Greece. The serpent was a symbol of evil power and chaos from the underworld as well as a symbol of fertility, life and healing. נחש Nāḥāš, Hebrew for "snake", is also associated with divination, including the verb form meaning "to practice divination or fortune-telling". In the Hebrew Bible, Nāḥāš occurs in the Torah to identify the serpent in the Garden of Eden. Throughout the Hebrew Bible, it is also used in conjunction with saraph to describe vicious serpents in the wilderness. The tannin, a dragon monster, also occurs throughout the Hebrew Bible. In the Book of Exodus, the staffs of Moses and Aaron are turned into serpents, a nāḥāš for Moses, a tannin for Aaron. In the New Testament, the Book of Revelation makes use of ancient serpent and the Dragon several times to identify Satan or the devil. The serpent is most often identified with the hubristic Satan, and sometimes with Lilith.