Notes on the Catacombs of Priscilla Lecture

Introduction

• Location: Catacombs of Priscilla, Rome
• Early Christian and Jewish burial site
• Cover about 10 kilometers of passageways
• Stacked passageways, up to three stories deep

History and Significance

• Villa donated by a wealthy woman, Priscilla
• Used for family burials, then Christian community
• By 5th century: ~40,000 tombs
• Bodies placed in niches or sarcophagi
• Wealth disparity in burial practices
• Grave robbing and relic hunting

Myths vs. Reality

• Catacombs not secret worship places
• Christianity sometimes tolerated before Edict of Milan (313 AD)

Art in the Catacombs

• Earliest Christian art found here
• Possible reasons for late emergence of Christian art:
  • Lack of survival
  • Development of a Christian artistic vocabulary
  • Prohibition of images
  • Separation from pagan practices

Key Artistic Features

• Earliest Madonna and Child image
• Christian iconography development
• Greek Chapel:
  • Roman First Style wall painting
  • Scenes from Old/New Testament
  • Meals as memorials for the dead

Important Scenes

• Old Testament: Three youths in the fiery furnace
  • Appeal to persecuted Christians
• New Testament:
  • Adoration of the Magi
  • Resurrection of Lazarus
  • Emphasis on Christ's teachings and miracles

Scene Interpretations

• Sacrifice of Isaac: Foreshadow of Christ’s sacrifice
• Breaking of Bread:
  • Reference to Eucharist and miracle of loaves/fishes

Cubiculum of the Veil

• Depiction of a woman (marriage, motherhood, afterlife)
• Represents hope of a blessed afterlife

Artistic Style and Symbolism

• Good Shepherd imagery:
  • Influence from Roman art
  • Symmetrical, transcendent representation
• Symbols: peacocks (eternal life), quail (earth), doves (peace)

Conclusion

• Catacombs represent the beginnings of Christian art tradition
• Complex symbolism and early iconography in burial contexts