Noah is portrayed holding an object which is, in all likelihood, a saw, the tool he would have used to build the ark. Besides being the figure that opens the second age in the
Compendium by Peter of Poitiers, Noah was considered by the Church Fathers to be one of the main figures of Jesus Christ. Like the Saviour, Noah preached penitence. He built an ark, just as Christ built the Church. He saved those who entered the ark with him whilst the others perished, just as Christ welcomes humanity into the Church to find salvation.
Abraham has a beard and long hair. He holds a knife in his hands, the instrument he was about to kill his son Isaac with. His traits were already features of Jewish art for he is portrayed in the same fashion in the Doura synagogue (3rd century).
Ana Domínguez Rodríguez
Universidad Complutense de Madrid