Emblematic Arks in John Donne's 'A Hymne To Christ' and the Antwerp Polyglot Bible (1568–73)

Noah's ark ([inline-graphic 01] or thebah ) fascinated the Christian Hebraist makers of the Antwerp Polyglot Bible. Their sacred philology interpreted thebah as a singular life-preserving vessel, and their Bible's elegant engravings of thebah insert Christ's crucified body inside it....

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Bibliographic Details
Published inELH Vol. 90; no. 4; pp. 933 - 953
Main Author Goeglein, Tamara A
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Baltimore Johns Hopkins University Press 01.12.2023
Subjects
Bible
British & Irish literature
Christianity
Conformity
Dictionaries
Donne, John (1572-1631)
English literature
Engraving
Hebrew language
Latin language
Old Testament
Philology
Sermons
Theology
Germany
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Summary:Noah's ark ([inline-graphic 01] or thebah ) fascinated the Christian Hebraist makers of the Antwerp Polyglot Bible. Their sacred philology interpreted thebah as a singular life-preserving vessel, and their Bible's elegant engravings of thebah insert Christ's crucified body inside it. "Christ's ark," as I call this emblem, figures the life-preserving Resurrection promised in Christ's sacrificial death. I argue that "Christ's ark" informs John Donne's "A Hymne to Christ." In its first stanza, Donne makes a distinctly personal emblem of "Christ's ark," which intersects with the hymn's controversial closing lines. These closing lines express faith in Christ's Resurrection, and, with His Resurrection, Donne's own.
ISSN:0013-8304
1080-6547
1080-6547
DOI:10.1353/elh.2023.a914022