The Arrest of Christ - Folio 114r

The Arrest of Christ — Folio 114r

Drawn from the Book of Kells’ interpretation of Matthew 26, Christ stands calm and resolute as soldiers seize Him in the Garden of Gethsemane. Judas is absent from the composition, shifting the focus away from betrayal and toward Christ’s willing acceptance of the Passion.

On the reverse, the serpent of Eden coils once more in the shadows of Gethsemane — symbol of the Fall and humanity’s ancient wound. Yet in this moment of arrest begins the undoing of that Fall, the ancient enemy already marked for defeat. Through suffering comes redemption; through the Passion, resurrection.

Hand-painted in enamel on traditional Palestinian hand-blown glass from Bethlehem, this ornament unites Celtic illumination with ancient Middle Eastern glassmaking traditions.