Anachronistic Art: The Crucifixion

Image Credit: Visoki Decani Monestary, Kosovo, Yugoslavia (Huffington Post)

This painting is titled "The Crucifixion" and it is a fresco by an unknown artist in the Visoki Decanti Monestary in Kosovo, Yugoslavia. The depiction is that of its namesake, and appropriately there are angels flying overhead Jesus as he dies on the cross. But also...wait, are those UFO's?

Indeed, there are two depictions of objects in the atmosphere that are reminiscent of a manned spacecraft capsule. What mystifies me about these depictions is the detail of the "UFO's." If the artist had seen these about, flying around, he must have just illustrated what he imagined the curious celestial object to be like up close. It also interests me that he dressed the pilots in era-specific robes. Did this unknown painter imagine UFO's as being of a divine origin? Or perhaps, are these simply imagined? We will never know, and of course there was no way the artist was present at the crucifixion, but given the strong religious impact on culture at this time period (roughly 1350), I can only assume that any UFO would be considered as a sight from God and Heaven.

Unusually Yours,

Emily