What Is Beautiful Is Good? Examining Significance of Sarah’s Beauty in The Genesis Apocryphon 20:2-9

Abstract

The description of Sarah in Genesis Apocryphon 20:2–9 may be the only narrative containing a woman’s physiognomic description that has been preserved in ancient Jewish texts. First, by reading the references in light of physiognomics, which assumes that physical aesthetics reflect inner qualities, I analyze the beauty
preferences expressed in this text. I make use of physiognomic descriptions in ancient Near Eastern and Greek texts to uncover what the aesthetic preferences may have indicated in antiquity. Second, whereas others have proposed that the physiognomic examination concerns Sarah as a spouse, I argue that the description of Sarah’s appearance does not concern her relationship with Abraham. Rather, the passage speaks of Sarah’s own qualities, which the Egyptians are able to recognize thanks to their physiognomic examination; they examine Sarah as a possible spouse for the king and find her suitable. Also, based on Sarah’s looks, the Egyptians conclude that she possesses wisdom.