Christianity before Constantine

Prior to Constantine, there was no special tradition of Christian art or architecture. This was true across the empire. But around 200, this began to change. We begin to see the use of seal rings for legal documents. At the same time, many Christians believed in peace and did not want to use shields or swords for their signet rings. Instead, they began to use traditional Roman images, but in new ways. With this information in mind, read the Selected Statements from the Early Christian Fathers and see how their thinking on the use of images began to change:

Selected Statements from the Early Christian Fathers concerning Images

“And neither do we honor with many sacrifices and garlands of flowers such deities as men have formed and set in shrines and called gods; since we see that these are soulless and dead, and have not the form of God.”

Justin Martyr (died ca. 165), First Apology, ch. IX

“Do you suppose we conceal our object of worship because we have no shrines and altars? What image can I make of God when, rightly considered, man himself is an image of God? What temple can I build for Him, when the whole universe, fashioned by his handiwork, cannot contain Him: Shall I, a man, housed more spaciously, confine within a tiny shrine power and majesty so great? Is not the mind a better place of dedication? Our inmost heart of consecration? Shall I offer to God victims and sacrifices which he has furnished for my use, and so reject his bounties? That were ingratitude seeing that the acceptable sacrifice is a good spirit and a pure mind, and a conscience without guile. He who follows after innocence makes prayer to God; he who notices justice offers libations; he who abstains from fraud, propitiates; he who rescues another from peril, slays the best victim. These are our sacrifices, these our hallowed rites; with us justice is the true measure of religion. But certainly the God whom we worship we neither show nor see. Verily for this reason we believe Him to be God.”

Minucius Felix (ca. 200), Octavius, ch. XXXII

“Idol in ancient times there was none. Before the artificers of this monstrosity had bubbled into being, temples stood solitary and shrines empty, just as to the present day in some places traces of the ancient practice remains permanently Yet idolatry used to be practiced, not under that name, but in that function; for even at this day it can be practiced outside a temple, and without an idol. But when the devil introduced into the world artificers of statues and of images, and of every kind of likenesses, that former rude business of human disaster attained from idols both a name and a development. . Thenceforward every art which in any way produces an Idol instantly became a fount of idolatry. . . . Lest any should think that only to be held an idol which is consecrated in human shape . . eidos in Greek, signifies form . . every form . . therefore, claims to be called an idol.” Hence idolatry is “all attendance and service about every idol.” Hence also, “every artificer of an idol is guilty of one and the same crime . . .”

Tertullian (ca. 200), On Idolatry ch.III

“Moses enacted expressly that neither a graven, nor molten, nor molded, nor painted likeness should be made so that we my not cleave to things of sense, but pass to intellectual objects: for familiarly with the sight disparages the reverence of what is divine; and to worship that which is immaterial by matter, is to dishonor it by sense.”

Clement of Alexandria (ca. 200), Stromata, VI (treatise on the Ten Commandments)

“And after this [the Seventh Commandment] is the [Eighth] command respecting theft. As, then, he that steals what is another’s, doing great wrong, rightly incurs ills suitable to his deserts; so also does he, who arrogates to himself divine works by the art of the statuary or the painter, and pronounces himself to be the maker of animals and plants.”

Clement of Alexandria, Stromata, VI

“If it is necessary for us, while engaged in public business, or discharging other avocations in the country, and often away from our wives, to seal anything for the sake of safety, He [God] allows us a signet for this purpose only . . . . And let our seals be either a dove, or a fish, or a ship scudding before the wind, or a musical lyre, which Polycrates used, or a ship’s anchor, which Seleucis got engraved as a device; and if there be one fishing, he will remember the apostle, and the children drawn out of the water. For we are not to delineate the faces of idols, we who are prohibited to cleave to them; nor a sword, nor a bow, following as we do, peace; nor drinking-cups, being temperate.”

Clement of Alexandria (ca. 200), Paedagogus, III

“If one will examine their [the Jews’] polity from its first beginning, and the arrangement of their laws, he will find that they were men who represented upon earth the shadow of a heavenly life, and that amongst them God is recognized as nothing else, save He who is over all things, and that amongst them no makers of images was permitted to enjoy the rights of citizenship. For neither painter nor image-maker existed in their state, the law expelling all such from it; that there might be no pretext for the construction of images, an art which attracts the attention of foolish men, and which drags down the eyes of the soul from God to earth. . . . The law, indeed, wished them to have regard to the truth of each individual thing, and not to form representations of things contrary to reality, feigning the appearance merely of what was really or really female, or the nature of animals, or of birds, or of creeping things, or of fishes.”

Origen (before 248), Against Celsus, IV, xxxi

“All those indeed sit in darkness, and are rooted in it, who fix their gaze upon the evil handiwork of painters, and molders and sculptors, and who will not look upwards, and ascend in thought from all visible and sensible things, to the Creator of all things, who is light.”

Origen, Against Celsus, VI, lxvi

As you've just read, Clement of Alexandria tells us that Seleucis used a ship’s anchor as his seal. The Greeks and Romans were familiar with the anchor as a traditional symbol or hope, security, and safety. So it was a pagan symbol that was non-threatening. When the Early Christians used the anchor, they recognized that it could also be understood as a symbol of the cross, as you see here.

Likewise, the fish was an important symbol. The fish and bread allude to the events in the Gospel stories, such as the Miracle of the Loaves and Fish. Fishing was also a reference to St. Peter, who was a fisherman and “a fisher of men.” Also during the early period, the fish was used as a symbol for the soul.

Taken together, the symbolism of the anchor, cross, and fish were meant to say -- “if you become a Christian, you will have a safe harbor and security in heaven.”

The Catacombs

Some of the earliest Christian art exists in the catacombs. These are vast subterranean networks of passageways and chambers that were designed for burying the Christian dead, although there were other sects buried in the catacombs as well. Like the Etruscan necropolis, these were located outside of the city and usually on private property. They were below grade and cut out of tufa — the dark local limestone from which the Etruscan tombs were also made. The catacombs were very long and convoluted chambers — estimated to be 60-90 miles long. Some of these chambers were also several levels deep — as many as five levels in some cases. Notice in the photograph above the the shelf-like openings within the walls that were designed to receive bodies. These are called loculi.

Catacomb of Saints Peter and Marcellinus, Rome, early 4^th century

Often, the Christians carved out small rooms in the catacombs called cubicula. They were used as mortuary chapels. The Catacomb of Saints Peter and Marcellinus, Rome is one example.

Notice the painted ceiling. The large circle mimics a dome — an architectural form that you know in the context of the Pantheon and one that symbolized heaven. Within the circle is a cross, a Christian symbol. Surrounding the cross are figures with their arms raised and palms forward. These are orants or praying figures.

Within the center of the cross is a smaller circle which is akin to the oculus which appears in the dome of the Pantheon. In this small circle, we see a man with a sheep over this shoulder. This is an image we have seen before — the Archaic “calf bearer.” Here, however, this is not an image of an animal sacrifice. Instead, it refers to one of Jesus’s sayings — “I am the good shepherd; the good shepherd gives his life for his sheep” (John 10:11). By this, Jesus means that he is taking care of his fellow men and women. Note that the shepherd is youthful and beardless.

In the Lunettes, we see scenes from the Old Testament story of Jonah and the Whale. Jonah was sent by God to Nineveh to preach to the heathens. However, Jonah decides to defect and flee from this charge by boarding a boat:

Left: As the boat is at sea, God punishes Jonah by unleashing a tempest. When Jonah confessed that he was the cause of the storm, he was thrown overboard.
Right: He was then swallowed by a great fish (ketos in Greek -- which means “sea dragon”). While in its belly for three days, Jonah repented.
Center: On the third day, he was disgorged from the fish, unharmed (compare this pose to the Drunken Satyr below).

Although this was an Old Testament Story, the Christians claimed that the New Testament was hidden in the Old Testament. They saw the story of Jonah as prefiguring the story of Jesus. As Jonah was cast to sea, Jesus was crucified. As Jonah was in the belly of the whale for three days, Jesus was dead for three days. As Jonah was disgorged from the whale and saved, Jesus was resurrected from the dead and became the savior of mankind.

Notice that the style of painting was quick, spontaneous, and often very sketchy.

After Christianity received official approval from Constantine, the catacombs became less important.

Sarcophagus with philosopher, orant, and Old and New Testament Scenes, Santa Maria Antigua, Rome, ca. 270

Until the 2^nd century A.D., the traditional funerary practice of the Romans was cremation. However, the Christians rejected cremation and their funeral practices may have influenced other Romans. Therefore, for the wealthiest Romans and Christians, carved marble sarcophagi were commissioned. The sarcophagus of Santa Maria Antigua has several scenes in relief sculpture across the front. You should be able to recognize the meaning and the image was "borrowed" from Classical Antiquity.

Center: Orant & Philosopher (compare to the Roman Philosopher sculpture).
Left: Jonah and the Whale (compare Jonah to the Hellenistic Drunken Satyr).
Right: Christ as the Good Shepherd, Jesus being baptized in the Jordan River (compare to the Archaic Greek Calf Bearer).

Sarcophagus of Junius Bassus, ca. 359

This is a Christian sarcophagus that was made for Junius Bassus, the prefect of the city of Rome. He was baptized right before his death in 359.

At first glance, it looks like a series of images from the Old and New Testaments. Each presented in a bay, articulated by elaborate columns.

Here are some of the biblical scenes:

Adam & Eve (in the orange box): They represent the fall from Paradise. This scene was important for Christians because they believed that baptism could wash away the sins that Adam and Eve brought into the world.
Daniel in the Lion’s Den (in the pink box): Daniel is not devoured by the lions and it saved by his faith
Abraham & Isaac (in the green box): As a test to his faith, God asks Abraham to sacrifice his only son, Isaac. Just at the last minute, an angel sweeps in an tells Abraham to stop. This is a story thought to prefigure God’s sacrifice of His only son — Jesus.
Christ being brought to Pontius Pilate for Judgment (in the blue box): Pontius Pilate was the Roman governor of Judea, under whom Christ was crucified.

Notice that there is NO crucifixion scene — this imagery does not appear in Christian art until the 5^th century.

Taking a second look, one can again see that Roman Imperial imagery was adapted to Christianity — most specifically, the two central scenes.

Center Top: We see Christ enthroned — He is akin to Constantine giving largess. Thus, the artist uses a Roman formula to express Christ’s power.

Center Bottom: We see Christ entering Jerusalem. This imagery is a revision of an adventus, people begging for mercy at the arrival of a powerful leader). Recall the Equestrian Statue of Marcus Aurelius, Rome, ca. 175 A.D. and remember that originally there was a Barbarian beneath the raised leg of the horse.

Christ Enthroned, ca. 350-375

During the 4^th century, monumental sculpture of emperors and pagan gods was produced less frequently. At the same time, Early Christian writers like Justin Martyr reminded followers of Christianity to shun graven images. Still, for new converts, it was sometimes hard to give up all pagan traditions, and we do find some small statues of Jesus. This is less than 3 feet tall. It combines the seated stance usually used to show aged philosophers with the very youthful (beardless!) head of Christ. Is a unique piece without a provenance.