THE CURTAIN of the sanctuary — from katapetannymi, to spread out downward; a hanging, not a wall. ⚠ Matthew 27:51 says it was torn in two ‘from top to bottom’, and the direction is the whole point: it is the one detail that makes the tearing a statement about who did it rather than a consequence of the earthquake two clauses later. The text does NOT say which curtain. The sanctuary had an outer hanging at the entrance, visible from the court, and an inner one before the holy of holies, seen once a year by one man; a tearing of the first is a public sign and a tearing of the second is a statement about access, and commentators have argued for each since antiquity on grounds the text does not supply. Hebrews 10:20 takes the inner one and makes it the flesh of Christ. The library reports that Matthew leaves it open. → first discussed at Matt 27:51