Iconography of St. John the Baptist:

the lamb, reed cross, camel hair garment, pointing finger & red

The iconographic devices which are associated with St. John the Baptist are items that are drawn from scriptural rather than hagiographical sources. First, the predominant symbol associated with St. John the Baptist is a lamb. This refers to his pronouncement, “Behold the lamb of God” John 1:29, referring to Jesus of Nazareth. Sometimes the lamb is depicted resting on a book--i.e., the Bible--or a plate. Second, another device that is often held by the saint is a long staff with a small crosspiece towards the top. It resembles, en forme, a processional cross carried in Christian rites and is sometimes referred to as a reed cross. Frequently this reed cross will have a narrow banner with the pronouncement from John 1:29. Third, infrequently, St. John the Baptist is painted wearing a camel skin or a garment composed of camel hair described in Matthew 3:4. This refers to his ascetic existence, particularly in the wilderness as well as his humility. Fourth, frequently, St. John the Baptist points with the index finger of his right hand. Again, this refers to his identification of Jesus of Nazareth in John 1:29. The finger may be pointing to the figure of Christ, his reed cross or towards the heavens. The pointing finger, although not specifically described in the Gospel of John, has been a one of the earliest iconographic devices applied to the saint. It must be noted that in few representations of St. John the Baptist do all these devices appear. Generally there is at least one or two symbols appearing, and in a very few cases, none! The mid-XVI^th Century painting by Joan de Joanes aka Juan de Juanes is an example in which the artist encorporates the four Biblical symbols of St. John the Baptist (See illustration below).