File:The church in the catacombs - a description of the primitive church of Rome - illustrated by its sepulchral remains (1846) (14782080065).jpg

Identifier: churchincatacom00mait (find matches)
Title: The church in the catacombs : a description of the primitive church of Rome : illustrated by its sepulchral remains
Year: 1846 (1840s)
Authors: Maitland, Charles, 1815-1866
Subjects: Catacombs Christian art and symbolism Church history
Publisher: London : Longman, Brown, Green, and Longmans
Contributing Library: Robarts - University of Toronto
Digitizing Sponsor: University of Toronto

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in luxurious easemay find gratification in applying the resources ofart to the illustration of martyr-suffering. AParmegiano, himself safe from the rack and theflames, had leisure to elaborate the well-pro-portioned figure of his heroine, to embody in adark and rugged executioner all that could con-trast with the fair and undraped form of the vic-tim, and to array in the terrors of chiaroscuro the 254 THE ORIGIN OF CHRISTIAN ART. instruments of torture and death : till the world,worked up to frenzy by the sight, fancied itselfready to die in the cause, and by acclamation voteditself Christian. But the ancient Church neverrepresented scenes of a painful character : the deli-verance of a Jew from the lions of Babylon waspreferred to the destruction of a Christian by thoseof the Colosseum ; and the three Hebrews preservedfrom the rage of Nebuchadnezzar were a moreconsolatory subject than the victims of Neroniancruelty, wrapped in pitch cloth, and used as torchesto illuminate the circus.
Text Appearing After Image:
In this fragment of a sarcophagus, the usuallicence of early art is perceived: the mighty fur-nace of the plains of Dura is reduced to a mereoven in three compartments : and the fourth figure, like unto the Son of God, is omitted. The figures of Daniel appear in every degree ofrudeness ; although the subject, requiring, as it wasthought, a knowledge of the nude, presented diffi-culties equal to that of Adam and Eve. Thespecimen annexed is from a Catacomb painting. TBE ORIGIN OF CHRISTIAN ART. 255

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