1. The Lamb opening the seals and the beasts taking John's hand (detail of left half), Saint-Sever Apocalypse, ca. 1075.

1. The Fall, Scivias, book I, vision 2: Hildegard sees the creation of Eve as "a white cloud that had come forth from a beautiful human form... bearing in her body the whole multitude of the human race." At the Fall, a black pit opens and casts them out of paradise. She did not think in terms of the traditional temptation of Adam by Eve.

1. Abbess Aldegonde's vision of the Apotheosis of St. Amand, ca. 1125–1145.

1. Soul and Body, Walk of the Soul, Scivias, book 1, vision 4: The "great and severe splendor, flaming with many eyes," appearing like a kite, is the "Supernal Creator" ensouling a "perfect human form" in the womb of a reclining woman, who is about to give birth. The small scenes on the right show the trials of the soul.

1. Column of the Trinity, Scivias, book 3, vision 7: This very unusual image of the Trinity, as a compound pier forming the corner of a building, is explained on pp. 118–119. The Christ in Majesty in figure merges with the steps to his throne, but here the Godhead has no human features. Like many images in book 3, this one demonstrates the very high symbolic value Hildegard placed on architecture.

Example 2. From "O tu suavissima virga." O tu suavissima virga frondens de stirpe lesse, o quam magna virtus est quod divinitas in pulcherrimam filiam aspexit, sicut aquila in solem oculum suum ponit: Cum supernus Pater claritatem Virginis adtendit ubi Verbum suum in ipsa incarnari voluit. O sweetest branch budding from the stock of Jesse, what a mighty work this is! God gazed on his fairest daughter as an eagle sets its eye upon the sun:

1. Virtues in the Tower of the Will of God, Scivias, book 3, vision 3: The tower, drawn as a crenellated circle, signifies the foundations of virtue in the Old Testament; in its turrets are the Christian virtues of Heavenly Love, Discipline, Modesty, Mercy, and Victory, "each dressed in silk garments." Longing, carrying a crucifix, and Patience appear in the lower right corner.

1. Richard of Saint Victor, Temple gatehouse, illustration for Ezekiel's vision; probably before 1173.

Example 3. From "O splendidissima gemma."

1. The Trinity, Book of Divine Works, part 1, vision 1: This time the Trinity appears to Hildegard in human form, trampling underfoot the satanic serpent (compare figure ). The beautiful young man with a face too brilliant to look at, and with four wings, is the Holy Spirit, while the older face of God the Father rises from the first head and the Son is figured by the "Lamb or Light of God." This brilliant red and gold image explains itself to Hildegard as the "fiery life of the divine essence."

1. Giving of Life: Communion, Scivias, book z, vision 6: Two pictures at the opening of this chapter show a crowned woman (Ecciesia) receiving the blood of the Eucharist from Christ on the cross, and (reproduced here) a priest saying Mass at an altar with a great light (drawn as angels) coming down at the moment of transubstantiation when "the offering is made true flesh and blood." The members of the congregation vary in readiness, but all will be received if they repent.

1. Son of Humanity, Scivias, book 3, vision 10: Hildegard sees "the Shining One" (the youthful Christ) seated at the eastern corner of a building but hidden from her from the waist down. Below him appear Constancy (the stag connotes transience), Celestial Desire, and Compunction of Heart, then a bodiless Contempt of the World and winged Concord, whose face is so bright Hildegard "could not look fully at her."

1. The Heavenly Jerusalem with Wisdom and God, Book of Divine Works, part 3, vision 4: Hildegard recognizes the richly dressed woman on the left, in white and green, as Wisdom. The resplendent hybrid in the center, with mirrors in his wings, is Almighty God; the face is too bright to look on, but it is a human face because mankind was created in God's image. The second face in the stomach of this figure connotes the salvation of mankind that was foreseen from the beginning, but the darkness swirling next to heaven is a "place of punishment."

1. The Day of the Great Revelation, Scivias, book 3, vision Ii: Hildegard sees five beasts in the north, like a dog, a lion, a horse, a pig, and a wolf, presaging "five ferocious epochs of temporal rule" toward the end of time. In the west the youthful Christ of her previous vision (figure ) appears again; below, Hildegard recognizes the crowned woman of book 2, vision 6, but with "scaly blemishes" on her hips and a monstrous head at her genitals, which leaves her violently and is destroyed by a thunderbolt (lower right). The church is invaded by Antichrist and betrayed "because those who should love her will violently persecute her."

Example 5. Victory over the Devil, from Ordo virtutum.

1. Tower of Church, Scivias, book 3, vision 9: The tower of the church rises out of sight from foundation walls that are still uinder construction, and is filled with people, some of whom are "very dirty and black and act insane." A female figure Hildegard identifies with Knowledge of God (with a scroll) encourages people to keep the garment they have been given (Christian faith and God's law), while Wisdom rises from her pavilion with seven pillars, her face too bright to see. justice tramples a dragon and three-headed Sanctity brandishes a sword. All pay homage to Christ, who however is not seen; the female Virtues appear very powerful.

1. Heavenly Jerusalem with Saints, Book of Divine Works, part 3, vision 2: People of all ages huddle in a mountain that is brilliantly illuminated. Two hybrids hover above, combining human features with those of a leopard and a bear or a hawk. Hildegard glosses them as the era before the Flood, when men mated with animals, and the era after the Flood, or under the law. Above the heavenly city a crowd plays music which "resounds like a delightful resonance in the clouds." These are the saved. Hildegard's text mentions the Virgin Mary several times, but she never appears in the images.

Example 1. Ave regina celorum.

Example 6.1. A Unifying Phrase from the First Lament. Example 6.2.

1. Tree of Jesse, Speculum virginum, mid-twelfth century.