The Child Jesus (also called Divine Infant, Baby Jesus, or Christ Child) represents Jesus from his birth to the age of twelve. At thirteen he was considered to have become adult, in accordance with both the Jewish custom of his own time, and that of most Christian cultures until recent centuries. The Child Jesus has been very frequently depicted in art, from around the third or fourth century onwards, in icons and paintings, sculpture, and all th...
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The Child Jesus (also called Divine Infant, Baby Jesus, or Christ Child) represents Jesus from his birth to the age of twelve. At thirteen he was considered to have become adult, in accordance with both the Jewish custom of his own time, and that of most Christian cultures until recent centuries. The Child Jesus has been very frequently depicted in art, from around the third or fourth century onwards, in icons and paintings, sculpture, and all the media available. The most common depictions are of Nativity scenes showing the birth of Jesus, with his mother, Mary, and his legal father Joseph, and depictions of him as a baby with his mother, known as Madonna and Child, of which there are a number of iconographical types in both Eastern and Western traditions. Other scenes from his time as a baby, of his circumcision, Presentation at the temple, the Adoration of the Three Magi, and the Flight to Egypt, are common. Scenes showing his developing years are relatively rare, as these are...
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