Instytut Historii Sztuki <Posen> [Hrsg.]: Artium Quaestiones (7.1995)

CNOTA I GRZECH W GDAŃSKIEJ TABLICY DZIESIĘCIORGA PRZYKAZAŃ

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the Mount Sinai to the Israelites), the other God’s grace empowering man to meet the re-
quirements of the Decalogue (the sending of Manna). The Gdańsk Table illustrates the
Decalogue by opposing the fulfillment of God’s rules to trespassing against them. Both the
former and the latter picture typical stories and situations charged with the power of ex-
ample (either positive or negative). Since the Decalogue is formulated as a set of prohibi-
tions and orders, it was easier to make a plot or a story for the sinning side. For instance,
in the 2nd commandment, on the good side we can see a group of pious people, while on
the opposite, right side — a court case in which the defendants commit the sin of perjury.
In the case of the 7th commandment, the sin is personified by thieves looting an apart-
ment, while virtue - by standing people who are distracted from the sin by an angel. Yet
there are also representations which counterbalance the manner of conveying the positive
and negative behavior. In the 3rd commandment, on the left side we can see a group of
devout Gdańsk townsmen listening to a sermon, whereas on the right - at the same time,
thus blameworthy - some youngsters are having a party in an inn. In the 4th command-
ment, children slandering and beating their parents are set against children serving their
parents. In the 6th commandment, which appeals for chastity, the party complying to this
appeal is presented in a scene of a wedding ceremony blessing the relationship between a
man and a woman, while the trespassing party in a scene in the garden, showing the sin of
lustfulness - vice against chastity.
A clear-cut division of the panel into two fields as well as the subject of the presented
scenes made the beholder aware that s/he was facing opposite values: the good and the
evil. Images presented on the Gdańsk Table confronted these values directly with the
“matter of life”. This was in accord with the spirit of the epoch - instead of abstract con-
siderations about virtue and vice, to present an analysis of concrete cases of trespassing
God’s law. The Table reminded of the principles, urged to obey them, encouraged to come
frequently to a confession, a sacrament widely propagated at that time, and thus helped to
examine one’s conscience. Placement of the huge table at the naves crossing not only made
the Decalogue commonly accessible, but also dignified all the preached values. The Table -
being within the reach of the church choir - was a point of reference for the priest saying
the sermon.
The Gdańsk Table exceeds the typical didactic functions. In a way, the Table was a
mirror of the Gdańsk society, yet a mirror that reflected such a vision of moral order and
sin that was held by its wealthiest section: the patriciate, wealthy merchants, and rich
craftsmen. The scenario of the Table many times confronts God’s laws with urban legal
regulations set by people; and it does it in such a manner that it is the observance of
human laws that constitutes a test for the behavior complying with God’s laws. The legal
and moral conscience of the Gdańsk people became a measure of the pastoral activity of
the Church. This reveals a secular feature - and it might be the reason why in the 2nd
commandment the need for God’s Grace, and consequently, for the presence of the Church,
is so much emphasized as necessary for a human being to be able to respect all laws. To
amplify the above message, the authors of the Table’s program resort to a narrative im-
balance of the positive and negative scenes, so characteristic of the Decalogue. In nature,
only evil and chaos coexist in a directly comprehensible manner - order is introduced, as it
were, only in consequence of someone’s work. From this perspective, perhaps, we should
look at the motif of figure connecting the two poles of values - a person who chooses, (1st
commandment), has chosen (6th and 9th commandments) or was compelled to make a cer-
tain choice (7th commandment).
The observance of law is pictured in many cases. Perjury and the court situation in the
2nd commandment are very common in the iconography of the Decalogue-at the turn of
the 15th century this problem became very acute in Gdańsk, as the newly edited by-laws
introduced some complimentary provisions in this respect. It was also a practice common
in the Decalogue iconography to present parties and games as an offence against the 3rd
commandment. In the Gdańsk presentation, the issue of alcohol consumption is strongly