In Christian iconography, the Transfiguration is the name given to Christ’s revelation of his divine status. According to the gospel of Matthew, Jesus took the apostles Peter, James and John to a mountain top, and there “His face shone like the sun, and his clothes became as white as the light” (Matt. 17: 2). Moses and Elijah appeared to them, while a voice from a bright cloud overhead declared “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!” (Matt. 17: 5).

The Transfiguration. Apse mosaic from the Church of St. Catherine, Mt. Sinai Monastery, Egypt. 548–565 CE.