The calling of Peter and Andrew

Hi everyone! My name is Isabella, and I'm so excited to show you a really cool picture today! It's called "The Calling of Peter and Andrew," and it's super old – from way back in 1590! It's like a snapshot from a story in the Bible. nn Does anyone know the Bible? It's a book with lots of amazing stories. This picture shows a very important moment. It shows Jesus calling some people to be his friends and help him. nn

This picture is a special kind of picture called an engraving. It's not painted with brushes, but made by carefully carving lines into a metal plate. Then, they used that plate to print many copies. It's like a super detailed stamp! It's not very big, only about as wide as a big book and a little taller. nn

Look closely! See Jesus? He's in the middle, shining brightly. He's reaching out to two fishermen, Peter and Andrew. They're kneeling down, looking surprised and happy. Peter is holding a fishing net. Can you see the other fisherman in the boat? He's busy pulling in the net. What do you think they're feeling? Excited? Surprised? nn

See the calm sea and the pretty trees? And there's even a little town in the distance! The artist was really good at showing all these details. He used different shades of gray to make things look three-dimensional, like they pop out from the picture. It's all in black and white, but it's still so beautiful, isn't it? nn

Around the edge, there are fancy pictures and words. They tell us more about who made the picture and who it was made for. There are even little seashells near the feet of Peter and Andrew. What do you think the shells mean? Maybe they show that Peter and Andrew were simple fishermen. nn

This picture isn't just about Jesus calling his friends. It also shows us how clever the artist was! He was really skilled at making the picture look real. It also tells us about what people believed a long, long time ago. It's a little window into the past! nn

What do you think is the most interesting part of the picture? What questions do you have about it? Let's talk about it! I'm so glad you came to see this amazing artwork with me today!