Botticelli's ‘The Temptations of Christ’: Nothing about the Leper

Abstract

Among the series of frescoes adorning the Sistine Chapel, two renowned frescoes by Botticelli exist. One depicts "The Temptation of Jesus" and the other depicts "The Youth of Moses". "The Temptation of Jesus" features a young man dressed in white at the center of the painting, also known as "The Temptation of Jesus and the Clean Leper". This article discusses Botticelli's artistic work "The Temptation of Jesus" through the lens of an educational experience of Artful Thinking in a Sunday school in Taiwan. Based on the children's comments and my knowledge of the Bible, I will explain that there is no connection between the content of this painting and the theme of leprosy.

Keywords: Artful Thinking, frescoes of Botticelli, Children’s views, Clean Leper, misinterpretation