Why did Michelangelo's sculpture of Moses have horns on it?

Answer 1

In one of the Greek translations of The Bible, they translated the word for halo or ray of light as horn. Because of this mistake in translation, a few depictions of Moses from this period, are depicted with horns.

In more recent translations of the bible, this mistake was corrected it now describes Moses as having rays of light.

Anyway, the "horns" in depictions of Moses are supposed to be rays of light.

Answer 2

When the bible was translated from Greek, there is a passage that is talking about Moses and the translator used the word 'horn' instead of using the word 'halo'. What the translator meant to say was that Moses had a halo, but instead he said Moses had a horn! Apparently, the word horn and halo are the same in Greek.

That error was not corrected until much later, but that is why artists from the Renaissance times depicted Moses with horns.

Answer 3

The Hebrew word taken from Exodus means either a "horn" or an "irradiation." Experts at the Archaeological_Institute_of_America show that the term was used when Moses "returned to his people after seeing as much of the Glory of the Lord as human eye could stand," and his face "reflected radiance."In early Jewish art, moreover, Moses is often shown with rays coming out of his head.

Another author explains, Saint_Jerometranslated the Old Testament into Latin, he thought no one but Christ should glow with rays of light - so he advanced the secondary translation. However, writer J. Stephen Lang points out that Jerome's version actually described Moses as "giving off hornlike rays," and he "rather clumsily translated it to mean 'having horns.'"

Answer 4

The horns represent rays of light. (Exodus 34:29).

Answer 5

Moses with horns on his head was the normal medieval Western depiction of Moses.

They are supposed be rays of light

Answer 6

He was commissioned to make a giant tomb for Pope Julius II. For various reasons it was never completed. Moses is part of what little was actually sculpted.

Answer 7

to make him look more fierce and evil