Jesus Chasing the Merchants from the Temple (detail of Christ and two merchants, c.1303-5) by Giotto di Bondone (c.1266-1337) Scrovegni Chapel, Padua
The dramatic incident known as Christ Chasing the Merchants from the Temple occurs in all four Gospels. Here in the Scrovegni Chapel Giotto includes this event in his fresco cycle of the Life of Christ. Giotto invests the narrative with a psychological power, new to Italian art. Christ’s confrontation with the scribes and money-lenders takes place before an architectural back-drop which suggests the Temple. Christ raises his right arm at the moment just before the whip he holds in his upraised arm will fall upon the merchants and scribes before him. Giotto contrasts the reactions of the figures standing at Christ’s right. While the threat of the impending fall of the whip causes the two merchants to cringe and lift their hands in fear, the scribes at the edge of the scene appear less threatened by Christ’s anger. Recognisable as scribes these men through such details as the richly decorated cloaks, stand watchful, assessing the impact of Christ’ denunciation of their behaviour. Christ’s figure expands in the moment before the full measure of his anger unfurls. The decisive actions of Christ convey a sternness which would have been more familiar to the original audience than it is to us.
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