the art of the catacumbs.
Paleochristian art began around 1st century and lasted about the 6th. century. It is an expression of the beliefs of the first christians and their inner need to communicate, in a free way, their religion.
Paintings over walls of the ancient catacumbs was an artwork, that early christiansused to leave testimony of their profound faith in Jesus Christ. The Frescoes within the catacombs have been slowly deteriorating, while others have been lost forever. The Bible occupies a very important role in the interpretation of catacomb art, whether it be frescoess or scultpures. Mainly, figures abiut the Old Testament were the main characters represented. Those ancient Christians used painting and sculpture to transmit certain symbols that became part of their secret way of communicating their faith. Thus, the Good Shepherd, just as the one beside here, was a common representation about Jesus Christ being the shepherd that took care about their lamb. Another important symbol, was the Chi-Rho Symbol (The Chrismon) This ancient monogram of Christ first appeared in the early 3rd century and can be seen stamped on ancient coins, shields, helmets and numerous works of art and print. The symbol is derived from the first two letters (Chi, Rho) of the Greek work XPICTOC, (Christos), meaning Christ. The Fish Each of the letters in this rebus represents a special meaning to the ‘born-again’ Christian: The first represents the name ‘Jesus’ which in Greek is pronounced ‘Iesous’. The second letter stands for ‘Christos’, which is the Greek form of the Jewish word ‘Messiah’, which translates into English as ‘Annointed One’. The third letter represents the Greek word ‘Theou’, which translates as ‘God’ or ‘of God’. The fourth letter stands for ‘Uios’ and translates as ‘Son’. The last letter represents the Greek word ‘Sooteer’ - meaning ‘Saviour’. The full meaning of the the entire Greek word translates therefore, as ‘Jesus Christ, Son of God, Saviour’ In sculptor, the same symbols appeared in sculpture in round or in reliefs over the wall. After Emperor Constantine declared the free of thoughts through the Edict of Milan, Early Christians needed a temple to follow their rituals. So they copied the design of a building and closest idea that came into their minds was: the Ancient Roman Basilika. Santa Maria Maggiore, was built in the center of Rome, as the first known church in the year 432 a.d. Now you can enter the blog and post a comment about this period. Also, you can reviewed the presentation.
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