To mark today's European Academic Heritage Day, celebrated under the motto “The Unexpected”, the University Museums of the University of Graz are presenting a object from their art history collection: Christ as the Good Shepherd (c. 1740).
The motif of the ‘good shepherd’ is widespread in Christian art: Jesus leads his sheep – symbolising the faithful – on the right path. He is usually depicted with a shepherd's crook and a sheep on his shoulders.
This painting, however, shows a completely different, rare representation: the sheep drink the blood of Christ – a powerful, symbolic image. It refers to the long tradition of veneration of the holy blood of Jesus, which has also found many forms in art history – from Jesus on the cross, whose blood flows into a chalice, to the Lamb of God, from whose wound blood flows. The work from our collection stands out clearly from these well-known depictions.
‘and my blood is real drink’ (John 6:55)
In the Eucharist (Communion), the wine symbolises the blood of Christ. A parallel is drawn between the red wine distributed during the liturgy (Christian service) and the blood of Jesus. The sheep represent Christians who drink the blood of Christ and thus experience participation in Christ.
‘I am the gate for the sheep.’ (John 10:7)
In this depiction, Jesus symbolises the Christian faith and, with his open chest, he invits Christians to faith. By entering Christianity, believers arrive at a blessed place. However, the sheep can also represent believers who find the way to paradise in Christ. Jesus acts here as a link between two places.