Abraham

== In the arts ==

===Painting and sculpture===
[[File:Isaac sarcifice Pio Christiano Inv31648.jpg|thumb|left|16th-century plaster cast of a late-Roman-era [[Sacrifice of Isaac]]. The hand of God originally came down to restrain Abraham's knife (both are now missing).]]

Paintings on the life of Abraham tend to focus on only a few incidents: the sacrifice of Isaac; meeting Melchizedek; entertaining the three angels; Hagar in the desert; and a few others.{{efn|name=Abeart}} Additionally, Martin O'Kane, a professor of Biblical Studies, writes that the parable of [[Rich man and Lazarus|Lazarus]] resting in the "[[Bosom of Abraham]]", as described in the [[Gospel of Luke]], became an iconic image in Christian works.{{sfn|Exum|2007|p=135}} According to O'Kane, artists often chose to divert from the common literary portrayal of Lazarus sitting next to Abraham at a banquet in Heaven and instead focus on the "somewhat incongruous notion of Abraham, the most venerated of patriarchs, holding a naked and vulnerable child in his bosom".{{sfn|Exum|2007|p=135}} Several artists have been inspired by the life of Abraham, including [[Albrecht Dürer]] (1471–1528), [[Caravaggio]] (1573–1610), [[Donatello]], [[Raphael]], [[Anthony van Dyck|Philip van Dyck]] (Dutch painter, 1680–1753), and [[Claude Lorrain]] (French painter, 1600–1682). [[Rembrandt]] (Dutch, 1606–1669) created at least seven works on Abraham, [[Peter Paul Rubens]] (1577–1640) did several, [[Marc Chagall]] did at least five on Abraham, Gustave Doré (French illustrator, 1832–1883) did six, and [[James Tissot]] (French painter and illustrator, 1836–1902) did over twenty works on the subject.{{efn|name=Abeart}}

The [[Sarcophagus of Junius Bassus]] depicts a set of biblical stories, including Abraham about to sacrifice Isaac. These sculpted scenes are on the outside of a marble [[Early Christian art|Early Christian]] [[sarcophagus]] used for the burial of [[Junius Bassus Theotecnius|Junius Bassus]]. He died in 359. This sarcophagus has been described as "probably the single most famous piece of early Christian relief sculpture."{{sfn|Rutgers|1993|p=}} The sarcophagus was originally placed in or under [[Old St. Peter's Basilica]], was rediscovered in 1597, and is now below the modern basilica in the Museo Storico del Tesoro della Basilica di San Pietro (Museum of [[St. Peter's Basilica]]) in the [[Vatican City|Vatican]]. The base is approximately {{convert|4|x|8|x|4|ft|m|abbr=on}}. The [[Old Testament]] scenes depicted were chosen as precursors of Christ's sacrifice in the [[New Testament]], in an early form of [[Typology (theology)|typology]]. Just to the right of the middle is Daniel in the lion's den and on the left is Abraham about to sacrifice Isaac.

[[George Segal (artist)|George Segal]] created figural sculptures by molding plastered gauze strips over live models in his 1987 work ''Abraham's Farewell to Ishmael''. The human condition was central to his concerns, and Segal used the Old Testament as a source for his imagery. This sculpture depicts the dilemma faced by Abraham when Sarah demanded that he expel Hagar and Ishmael. In the sculpture, the father's tenderness, Sarah's rage, and Hagar's resigned acceptance portray a range of human emotions. The sculpture was donated to the Miami Art Museum after the artist's death in 2000.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20110429085513/http://www.miamiartmuseum.org/collection-selected-segalgeorge.asp Abraham's Farewell to Ishmael. ''George Segal.'' Miami Art Museum. Collections: Recent Acquisitions.]. Retrieved 10 September 2014.</ref>

===Christian iconography===
[[File:Праведни Авраам и прaведни (покајани) разбојник у рају, живопис у светој обитељи Грачаница, Србија.jpg|thumb|Abraham in paradise, [[Gračanica Monastery]], [[Serbia]]]]
Abraham can sometimes be identified by the context of the image{{snd}} the meeting with [[Melchizedek]], [[:commons:Category:Abraham and three angels|the three visitors]], or [[:commons:Category:Sacrifice of Isaac|the sacrifice of Isaac]]. In solo portraits a sword or knife may be used as his accessory, as in [[:commons:File:AbrahamMorlaiterJRS.JPG|this statue]] by [[Giovanni Maria Morlaiter]] or [[:commons:File:AbrahamMonacoJRS.jpg|this painting]] by [[Lorenzo Monaco]]. The Bible describes him as an “older” person, and beardless.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.theholyscript.com/what-did-abraham-look-like-in-the-bible/|title=What did abraham look like in the bible? - The holy script|date=24 March 2023}}</ref>

As early as the beginning of the 3rd century, Christian art followed Christian [[Typology (theology)#Offering of Isaac|typology]] in making the sacrifice of Isaac a foreshadowing of Christ's sacrifice on the cross, and its memorial in the sacrifice of the Mass. See for example [[:commons:File:AltarFuldaClunyJRS.jpg|this 11th-century Christian altar]] engraved with Abraham's and other sacrifices taken to prefigure that of Christ in the Eucharist.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.christianiconography.info/abraham.html |title=Abraham the Patriarch in Art – Iconography and Literature | publisher=Christian Iconography – a project of [[Georgia Regents University]]. |access-date=2014-04-18}}</ref>

Some early Christian writers interpreted the three visitors as the [[triune God]]. Thus in [[Santa Maria Maggiore]], Rome, [[:commons:File:HospitalityAbrahamSMMaggioreJRS.jpg|a 5th-century mosaic]] portrays only the visitors against a [[gold ground]] and puts semitransparent copies of them in the "heavenly" space above the scene. In Eastern Orthodox art, the visit is the chief means by which the Trinity is pictured ([[:commons:File:Russian - Hospitality of Abraham - Walters 371185.jpg|example]]). Some images do not include Abraham and Sarah, like Andrei Rublev's ''Trinity'', which shows only the three visitors as beardless youths at a table.<ref name=Boguslawski>{{cite web|last=Boguslawski|first=Alexander|title=The Holy Trinity|url=http://myweb.rollins.edu/aboguslawski/Ruspaint/trinity.html|publisher=Rollins.edu|access-date=3 April 2014}}</ref>

===Literature===
''[[Fear and Trembling]]'' (original [[Danish language|Danish]] title: ''Frygt og Bæven'') is an influential philosophical work by [[Søren Kierkegaard]], published in 1843 under the pseudonym ''Johannes de silentio'' (''John the Silent''). Kierkegaard wanted to understand the anxiety that must have been present in Abraham when God asked him to sacrifice his son.{{sfn|Kierkegaard|1980|pp=155–156}} [[W. G. Hardy]]'s novel ''Father Abraham'' (1935) tells the fictionalized life story of Abraham.<ref>{{cite news|title=Abraham's Quest For God|last=Allison|first=W. T.|date=26 January 1935|newspaper=Winnipeg Tribune|location=Winnipeg, Manitoba|page=39|url=https://newspaperarchive.com/sports-clipping-jan-26-1935-1458299/}}{{free access}}</ref> In her short story collection ''[[Sarah and After]]'', [[Lynne Reid Banks]] tells the story of Abraham and Sarah, with an emphasis on Sarah's view of events.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Sutherland |first=Zena |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=UxgsBHor_LgC&dq=%22Sarah+and+After%22+Lynne+Reid+Banks&pg=PA28 |title=The Best in Children's Books: The University of Chicago Guide to Children's Literature, 1973–78 |date=1980 |publisher=University of Chicago Press |isbn=978-0-226-78059-7 |page=28 |language=en}}</ref>

=== Music ===
In 1681, [[Marc-Antoine Charpentier]] released a Dramatic motet (Oratorio), ''Sacrificim Abrahae'' H.402 – 402 a – 402 b, for soloists, chorus, doubling instruments and continuo. [[Sébastien de Brossard]] composed a [[cantata]] ''Abraham ou le sacrifice d'Isaac.'' between 1703 and 1708.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://en.opera-scores.com/O/S%C3%A9bastien+de+Brossard/Abraham+ou+le+sacrifice+d'Isaac.html#:~:text=Composer:+Brossard+S%C3%A9bastien+de+Full,full+scores+in+pdf|title=Cantata: Abraham ou le sacrifice d'Isaac Sébastien de Brossard. Sheet music|website=en.opera-scores.com}}</ref>

In 1994, [[Steve Reich]] released an opera named ''[[The Cave (opera)|The Cave]]''. The title refers to the [[Cave of the Patriarchs]]. The narrative of the opera is based on the story of Abraham, and his immediate family, as it is recounted in religious texts, and understood by individuals from different cultures and religious traditions.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Reich |first=Steve |date=1990 |title=The Cave - Steve Reich Composer |url=https://stevereich.com/composition/the-cave/ |website=stevereich.com}}</ref>

[[Bob Dylan]]'s "[[Highway 61 Revisited (song)|Highway 61 Revisited]]"<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.bobdylan.com/songs/highway-61-revisited/|title=Highway 61 Revisited &#124; The Official Bob Dylan Site|website=www.bobdylan.com}}</ref> is the title track for his 1965 album ''[[Highway 61 Revisited]]''. In 2004, ''[[Rolling Stone]]'' magazine ranked the song as number 364 in their [[Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Songs of All Time|500 Greatest Songs of All Time]].<ref>{{cite news|title=Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Songs of All Time|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/news/coverstory/500songs/page/4|access-date=8 August 2008|url-status=dead| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20080913125603/http://www.rollingstone.com/news/coverstory/500songs/page/4| archive-date= 13 September 2008}}</ref> The song has five stanzas. In each stanza, someone describes an unusual problem that is ultimately resolved on Highway 61. In Stanza 1, [[God in Abrahamic religions|God]] tells Abraham to "[[Binding of Isaac|kill me a son]]". God wants the killing done on Highway 61. Abram, the original name of the biblical Abraham, is also the name of Dylan's own father.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.duluthnewstribune.com/lifestyle/arts-and-entertainment/from-odessa-to-duluth-the-journey-of-bob-dylans-grandparents|title=From Odessa to Duluth: The journey of Bob Dylan's grandparents|date=28 March 2022|website=Duluth News Tribune}}</ref>