The Christian Church does not acknowledge these Seven Angels by name; neither in the East, where the worship of angels took deep root, nor yet in the West, where it has been tacitly accepted. Nor have I met with them as a series, by name, in any ecclesiastical work of art, though I have seen a set of old anonymous prints in which they appear with distinct names and attributes: Michael bears the sword and scales; Gabriel, the lily; Raphael, the pilgrim’s staff and gourd full of water, as a traveller. Uriel has a roll and a book: he is the interpreter of judgments and prophecies, and for this purpose was sent to Esdras:—‘The angel that was sent unto me, whose name was Uriel, gave me an answer.’ (Esdras, ii. 4.) And in Milton—
Uriel, for thou of those Seven Spirits that stand
In sight of God’s high throne, gloriously bright,
The first art wont his great authentic will
Interpreter through highest heaven to bring.
31 The Archangels Michael and Raphael (Campo Santo)
According to an early Christian tradition, it was this angel, and not Christ in person, who accompanied the two disciples to Emmaus. Chamuel is represented with a cup and a staff; Jophiel with a flaming sword. Zadkiel bears the sacrificial knife which he took from the hand of Abraham.
But the Seven Angels, without being distinguished by name, are occasionally introduced into works of art. For example, over the arch of the choir in San Michele, at Ravenna (A.D. 545), on each side of the throned Saviour are the Seven Angels blowing trumpets like cow’s horns:—‘And I saw the Seven Angels which stand before God, and to them were given seven trumpets.’ (Rev. viii. 2, 6.) In representations of the Crucifixion and in the Pietà, the Seven Angels are often seen in attendance, bearing the instruments of the Passion. Michael bears the cross, for he is ‘the Bannerer of heaven;’ but I do not feel certain of the particular avocations of the others.
In the Last Judgment of Orcagna, in the Campo Santo at Pisa (31), the Seven Angels are active and important personages. The angel who stands in the centre of the picture, below the throne of Christ, extends a scroll in each hand; on that in the right hand is inscribed ‘Come, ye blessed of my Father,’ and on that in the left hand, ‘Depart from me, ye accursed:’ him I suppose to be Michael, the angel of judgment. At his feet crouches an angel who seems to shrink from the tremendous spectacle, and hides his face: him I suppose to be Raphael, the guardian angel of humanity. The attitude has always been admired—cowering with horror, yet sublime. Beneath are other five angels, who are engaged in separating the just from the wicked, encouraging and sustaining the former, and driving the latter towards the demons who are ready to snatch them into flames. These Seven Angels have the garb of princes and warriors, with breastplates of gold, jewelled sword-belts and tiaras, rich mantles; while the other angels who figure in the same scene are plumed, and bird-like, and hover above bearing the instruments of the Passion (32).