This Gilead Fontanini Figurine
stands approximately 5” tall. The Gilead Fontanini Figurine is hand painted and antiqued for a wood carved appearance. The Fontanini Figure is made of a special polymer to resist chips and breaks. Gilead wears a sepia colored tunic over a pale yellow under shirt. His pants are antiqued in a medium green color. He wears matching sepia colored shoes. In his hands he pours a pitcher of water into an urn. Behind his left side is another pitcher. Upon his head he wears a Venetian red hat.
Gilead Story:
”Gilead served a wise king named Balthazar. He was content to spend his entire life within the confines of Balthazar’s palace until a golden star changed the course of his master’s life… and his. The king called his household together to explain the miracle: ‘We will set out tonight to find the long-awaited Messiah… where the star comes to rest. You must help me reach Him before my days on earth are over.’ Gilead was young, strong and very responsible. Fixing his eyes on the star, he led the group forward each evening. Balthazar knew he could trust the young man. He said very little until the night he announced they would meet other kings at a crossroads. ‘The spirit of God is guiding us,’ he assured everyone.
Gilead respected Balthazar, but he had no use for gods of any sort. He believed in himself and in the truth. But he admired Balthazar more than any man he had ever met… even his own father! How could a king truly believe a child lay at the end of the path to the star… a child who would forever change the world? Gilead’s skepticism might have gone unchanged had the prophesied meeting of the other kings not come about… followed by a robbery attempt foiled by the appearance of a winged creature. The angel saved all of the men and their possessions, then disappeared into the sunlight. Seeing this with his own eyes caused Gilead to search his heart for all Balthazar had told him in the past.
On the night the caravan was to enter Bethlehem, Gilead went to Balthazar’s tent to fill his water pitcher. He found the king alert and excited. When Balthazar looked up, he sensed a change in his servant’s eyes. He asked the young man to sit. When they talked of the angel’s rescue, Balthazar’s face grew gentle. “You will see more tomorrow… things sure to change your life. You, more than anyone in my service, will come to know the importance of our journey when you behold Him.’ Unsure of what to say, Gilead bowed slightly, lifting the king’s pitcher. He watched water flow from the mouth of the urn… watched it sparkle from the bright starlight. The water looked golden! “You will see more tomorrow… things sure to change your life,’ he repeated aloud, staring at the horizon where the star came to rest. Gilead sighed and felt a great hope rise in his soul. He would keep his heart… and mind… open.”
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