for this visual portrayal came to be emblem, which was commonly understood as the counterpart of the epigram, the literary convention.
One must remember that this is the age of the opera and the mystery plays. These religious dramas have been criticized for their lack of literary quality, but they did, in fact, greatly inspire the painters. It is difficult to believe that the fifteenth century public listened with rapturous attention to long sermons or metaphysical discourses, but the visual presentation undoubtedly had great impact. The groupings from the plays emerged especially in the work of Roger van der Weyden. The type of visual presentation in the plays shaped the eye and the sentiment of the fifteenth-century public, rousing them to tears. Scholars have noted that what people saw in the theatre is what emerged in the paintings and altarpieces of religious art. From a modern perspective it is difficult to imagine the emotional power of watching Jesus in person in the mystery plays--watching Him live and die, and to rise again before their very eyes. As literature these plays were not of significant value, but they did greatly influence the thinking and visual symbolism of the time.
Art historians have noted that other cultures made great use of hand gestures and the nature of their meanings. Ward and Stirling found that the ancient Chinese Triad Society used hands to convey thoughts and ideas difficult to interpret in the spoken language. For example, the hands may be used to show preservation, desire for money, or protection from attack. Many such hand gestures are universally understood world-wide, even in contemporary times.
Van Der Weyden's portraits reveal a wealth of underst
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