Christianity, Islam and Judaism

Clothing was used as not only a way to display ones’ membership to a certain group but it was also a way for Muslims and Jews to differentiate themselves from Christians. The idea of integration and miscegenation was such a horrific concept that the condemnation of interfaith relationships and marriage was solidified by enacting of laws against such actions. One law, as part of the Fourth Lateran Council’s decree, (Calkin, Siobhain Bly. “Marking religion on the body: Saracens, categorization, and The King of Tars.” The Journal of English and Germanic Philology (2005), http://prox.miracosta.edu/login?url=http://ic.galegroup.com/ic/whic/AcademicJournalsDetailsPage/AcademicJournalsDetailsWindow?disableHighlighting=false&displayGroupName=Journals&currPage=&scanId=&query=&prodId=WHIC&search_within_results=&p=WHIC%3AUHIC&mode=view&catId=&limiter=&display-query=&displayGroups=&contentModules=&action=e&sortBy=&documentId=GALE%7CA406902224&windowstate=normal&activityType=&failOverType=&commentary=&source=Bookmark&u=ocea63505&jsid=7f790684dd5c2cc4fec0c80472e6613a) was enacted to prevent Christians from accidentally copulating with those who were not Christian. Although some characteristic, behavioral, aesthetic and costume differences between particular groups were evident such as the Saracens (Anonymous Artists, Saracens: Eregrinatio in Terram Sanctam | Voyage to the Holy Land, published 11 February 1486, http://library.artstor.org.prox.miracosta.edu/library/iv2.html?parent=true#) from the Christians (Serra Jaime, Altarpiece of the Virgin (painted), Ca.1370., http://library.artstor.org.prox.miracosta.edu/library/iv2.html?parent=true). This is a depiction of a sacrilegious communion in which a man of Saracen, Arabian, decent is present and comingling with white Christian women. Not only does the man don a turbine but he has traditional Moroccan or Middle Eastern patterns on his surcoat. Other artist renderings display more subtle contrasts such as this piece by Hieronymus Bosch (Hieronymus Bosch, about 1490-1500, Christ Mocked (The Crowning with Thorns), http://library.artstor.org.prox.miracosta.edu/library/iv2.html?parent=true), which shows Christ and his persecutors. Here the differences are highlighted through symbols which are displaying on his persecutors attire. The person on the lower left sports the crescent moon of Islam and the yellow star of the Jews on his head covering.

Saracen wearing a tunic and a tortil (head covering), holding a spear and blowing a horn which emits Arabic letters. (Anonymous artist, Cy est le compost et kalendrier des Bergiers avecq leur Astrologie et aultre choses, 1500, http://library.artstor.org.prox.miracosta.edu/library/iv2.html?parent=true)