Page 440 - שערות לילית וקרני אשמדאי / נעמה וילוז'ני

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symbolism, was comprehensible to their consumers. The anchoring of these paintings in
local art complements a body of research which has already been done on magic texts on
the bowls and supports the idea that they were a unique magic artifact drawing inspiration
from magic and religious local literature.

CHAPTER THREE: THE INCANTATION TEXT AND ITS
RELATION TO THE PAINTINGS
This chapter focuses on the texts accompanying the artistic portrayals and traces their
different types and significance, thereby facilitating understanding of the significance
of the paintings. This analysis of texts inscribed on the bowls lacking paintings is also
important since some include a description of demonic figures or other elements which
can help in understanding the paintings. Moreover, the appearance of similar motifs in
the painting and the text forms the basis of the hypothesis that basic assumptions and
beliefs held by the Babylonians at the time of the Talmud constituted conventional, well
understood codes common to the texts and the paintings.

The first basic assumption which this chapter sets out to prove is that both texts and
paintings, each in their own way, express the intention of the magician to shackle or
exorcise the demons. Almost all the texts express this in some way. Most of the figures
in the paintings express a similar intention, in that the demons are presented bound and
limited in movement. Both texts and paintings reflect a rich magic world full of beliefs
and symbols familiar in the local society in which they were created. Presumably this
visual expression was comprehensible to people at the time; they knew how to interpret the
various motifs in the paintings. In this respect the conclusions arising from the chapter are
of utmost importance since they indicate that the paintings on the incantation bowls played
an essential role in presenting the magic world of the inhabitants of Sasanian Babylonia,
independently of the texts. They are therefore an inseparable part of the artistic world of the
period, reflecting among other things Jewish art as well. Jewish art, like that of neighboring
religions, served its creators in carrying a message to the viewer. The independence of
image from text amplifies the fact that the paintings belong to the world of art, providing
expression for people of the time.

CHAPTER FOUR: THE ARTISTIC IMAGERY OF MAGIC IN PALESTINE
This chapter deals with the magical objects which were found in Palestine and which bear
any figural depiction. Among them are mirror plaques, clay figurines, and metal amulet