Thread: medieval depictions of Christ expelling the bankers from the temple, in order of his increasing fury at capitalism.

Here, he seems like he's having a polite disagreement. Everyone is smiling.

(Morgan, MS M268, f. 29v) #MedievalTwitter

Honestly, he looks a little grumpy, but it just seems like he knocked some stuff off a table by accident.

(Morgan, MS M.359, f. 054v)

Everyone is very calm, with a "I think he's not going to hit us THAT hard" attitude.

(Utopia, armarium codicum bibliophilorum, MS Cod. 110, f. 60v)

He's shooing them out of the temple, but everyone is smiling.

(Morgan, MS M.230, f. 8r)

Everyone just seems confused about what's happening. "I...I guess he's upset?"

(Bodleian Library, MS Douce 313, f. 85v)

Christ is Stern, merchants are Concerned.

(Morgan, MS H5, f. 044r)

Oh shit, he's a little pissed. They're very upset at how they've been treated.

(Morgan, MS H5, f. 44v)

"Ok ok! We're leaving!"

(BL, MS Royal 15 D I, f. 319)

There's the first real fear in their faces. He is Mad.

(BL, MS Yates Thompson 13, f. 110v)

Now we get to the good stuff. He is *pissed* here.

(Bodleian Library, MS Douce 248, f. 15v)

THERE is the fear and fleeing.

(Morgan, MS M.894, f. 152r)

There is very much an attitude of "Oh SHIT" in these fleeing capitalists.

(Walters Art Museum, MS W546, f. 23r)

He is very angry, and they are SCRAMBLING for the exits.

(Morgan, MS M.492, f. 84r)

"It's flogging time, capitalists."

A sobering point by @SamanthaLKSeal that the later depictions racialize the bankers as Jewish. I'd excluded a few images from the thread originally that involved such racialization, but this is not my area, so I clearly missed that these did also. https://twitter.com/SamanthaLKSeal/status/1340398225983979520?s=20

It's a reminder of how pervasive medieval antisemitism was, and how carefully we need to be on the look-out for it.