God

Look closely, and you'll spot him waving from the distant clouds. From a psalter belonging to King Henry VIII; scanned from the book Henry VIII and his Court, by Neville Williams (1971).

We know we mustn't think of Almighty God as an old man in heaven, crowned and robed, yet how often the image crops up -- in Western art, of course. There is a precedent for it. In the Bible, Daniel says:

I beheld till thrones were placed,
And one that was ancient of days did sit;
His raiment was as white snow,
And the hair of his head like pure wool;
His throne was fiery flames, and the wheels thereof burning fire ... (Dan. 7:9)

Have readers noticed the large number of posts lately that are a bit long on pictures and a bit short on text? I hope no one minds. Working retail during the holidays, having the flu, and tending to the wine blog have all taken quite a bit of time. Will attempt to become as verbose as ever, soon.