Gold Glass
Bowl Base with Saints Peter and Paul
Late 4th century
Gold Glass Medallion with a Mother and Child
Early 4th century
Peregrina between Saints Peter and Paul
Mid-300s
Bowl Base with the Portrait of a Young Man
300–500
Christ as a Miracle Worker
300–500
Portrait of a Woman
4th century
Bowl Base with Miracle Scenes
ca. 350–400
Commemorations of the dead held at the deceased’s tomb focused on bidding farewell to loved ones and praying for the pardon of their sins and for their salvation. The catacombs of Rome—underground burial chambers used by all religions in the late Roman and early Byzantine era—are a particularly rich source of early Christian imagery. These images express Christian hopes of salvation. Here a beardless man dressed in a toga and the inscription “Live” are framed by miracle scenes. Beginning at the top and moving clockwise, these are Christ saving the three Hebrews in the fiery furnace (Daniel 3), Christ healing the paralytic (Matthew 9:1–8), Tobias with the fish that the archangel Raphael advises him will help restore his father’s sight (Tobit 6), and Christ turning water into wine at Cana (John 2:3–10).
Bowl Base with a Marriage Scene
4th–5th century
Medallion with a Portrait of Gennadios
250–300
Christ Giving Martyrs’ Crowns to Saints Peter and Paul
ca. 350
Bowl Base
300–early 400s
Menorah, Shofar, and Torah Ark
300–350
Saint Lawrence
5th century
Sources
Bowl Base with Miracle Scenes (MET)
Peter and Paul Flanking a Column with the Christogram of Christ (MET)
Bowl Base with a Marriage Scene (MET)
Gold Glass Medallion with a Mother and Child (MET)
Medallion with a Portrait of Gennadios (MET)
Plate Base with Peregrina between Saints Peter and Paul (MET)
Bowl Base with Christ Giving Martyrs’ Crowns to Saints Peter and Paul (MET)
Bowl Base with the Portrait of a Young Man (MET)
Christ as a Miracle Worker (MET)
Fragmentary Bowl Base with the Portrait of a Woman (MET)