Details of the Vézelay Tympanum

	In the commissioning of the apostles (above), Christ's hands have rays or blood extending from them (rays would signify the commissioning or blood would signify redemption).		The style of Romanesque art is still "conceptual"; that is, the idea is more important than realism. Here, Christ's larger size indicates his power as God and the whirling vortex of calligraphic lines conveys the emotion and spirituality of the work.
	On the lintel and above in the archvolts the artist has depicted exotic and strange peoples to be converted--pygmies and snout-nosed figures. Hunchbacks, the lame, and the blind are represented as well, all indicating the variety of defects humans are prey to and their need for salvation to come.
		An example of a historiated capital, this depicts the parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus told in Luke 16:19-31. Hellish demons, common in Romanesque art, take the soul of the rich man while snakes devour his riches under the bed; on the other side of the capital the soul of the poor man (souls in medieval art are always depicted as babies) is taken to heaven. A word to the wise should be sufficient!