The Altar of Incense
04/08/2023
Two similar suggestions for a visual interpretation of the Altar of Incense from Exodus 30. This art is intended for teaching and presenting purposes.
Please read artist's contextual documentation for this work below!
Study Notes · in a nutshell
The Altar of Incense: my study notes
Biblical descriptions
- Where were the rings? Each translation seems to vary slightly in suggesting where the rings might be located. If they were built into opposite corners, the corners of the altar would face north, south, east and west. But I do wonder why the edge alignment of the two altars would need to be different. I wonder if the better translation might be the ESV and the Hebrew in this case, with the rings on two opposite sides, which I’ve shown as my second model.
- How did the altar work? The golden Altar of Incense was expressly not to be used for sacrifices or burnt offerings, only for incense twice a day. The coals came from the Altar of Burnt Offering (Leviticus 16:12–13; Numbers 16:46). I’ve seen suggestions that coals and incense were placed directly on top of the altar, but I am not convinced.
- Censers and a “well.” Numbers 16:46 indicates that priests had censers. With the wooden construction of the Altar and its thin gold veneer, there might be good logistical reasons to keep the coals off the surface. I suggest there might be a sort of “well” within the altar to hold the censer in place, keeping it within its height limit and dispersing the heat without damaging the altar. This is a guess on my end.
- The horns. I’ve presented two possibilities. The typical “horn” is a more traditional approach; however, archaeological finds in Israel suggest an alternate form for these fixtures.
- Questions about the incense. The Temple Institute suggests that Exodus withheld some of the materials needed for the incense and that these were kept secret within a Levitical family. This is possible, but different translations leave it in question. Some translations (ESV, Hebrew) of Exodus 30:35 indicate that salt is to be used in the incense, while the KJV renders it “tempered together.”
“Again, much of this is my own assumption and should not be taken as absolute! Perhaps with further study and research better alternatives will present themselves.”
See also the Altar of Burnt Offering, the source of the coals, and my Day of Atonement study poster.