Abraham’s willingness to sacrifice Isaac and God’s
sacrifice of his son Jesus to redeem humankind, Christians viewed
the sacrifice of Isaac as a prefiguration (prophetic forerunner) of
Jesus’ crucifixion. Both refer to covenants (binding agreements between God and humans), and given that the sacrament of baptism
initiates the newborn or the convert into these covenants, Isaac’s
sacrifice was an appropriate choice for baptistery doors.
Contemporary developments, however, may also have been an
important factor in the selection of this theme. In the late 1390s,
Giangaleazzo
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