Religion
Related: About this forum'Beardless Jesus' found in Spain
Source: BBC NEWSArchaeologists in Spain say they have found one of the world's earliest known images of Jesus. It is engraved on a glass plate dating back to the 4th Century AD.
Jesus Christ is flanked by two apostles, believed to be Peter and Paul.
Christ looks very different from later depictions: he has no beard, his hair is not too long and he is wearing a philosopher's toga.
Read more: http://www.bbc.com/news/blogs-news-from-elsewhere-29480874
littlemissmartypants
(22,332 posts)okasha
(11,573 posts)HeiressofBickworth
(2,682 posts)I see some dude with a cross and no beard with a couple of other dudes along side.
Do they think anyone holding a cross is automatically Jesus?
Seems to me religious people see what they want to see.
MADem
(135,425 posts)This thing:
HeiressofBickworth
(2,682 posts)indicating that the scene depicted relates to Christianity, however, it still doesn't indicate that the exact person depicted is THE Jesus. It would be like me standing in front of the Australian flag -- doesn't make me an Aussie.
MADem
(135,425 posts)When I see that thing, I think they're talking about Jesus Christ--not "generic Christians." It's his "monogram," his personal symbol, not the symbol of his movement.
YMMV but that's my POV.
That's how it's used, and why it frequently appears on communion vessels and on the veil that covers them in liturgical churches.
It's like the Presidential seal. You know what it is, or you don't. Opinion doesn't enter into it.
MADem
(135,425 posts)Heh heh @ "the Presidential Seal." Perfect analogy!
MADem
(135,425 posts)It's hard finding work as a philosophy major!
mr blur
(7,753 posts)Who cares?
A myth is a myth whether it's bearded or not.
edhopper
(33,075 posts)and the early ones where up to the imagination of the artists.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Depiction_of_Jesus
left-of-center2012
(34,195 posts)Certain local traditions have maintained different depictions, sometimes reflecting local racial characteristics
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Depiction_of_Jesus#Range_of_depictions
Warren Stupidity
(48,181 posts)The historical accounts (sic) seemed to have missed that detail.
okasha
(11,573 posts)like the other white patches, indicates a space where a part of the artifact is missing.
Do try to think a bit, Warren. It's not that hard.
Warren Stupidity
(48,181 posts)Perhaps this might help you grasp the basics:
edhopper
(33,075 posts)his lower arm is a bit elongated.
The early christian artists weren't Michelangelo.
[img][/img]
okasha
(11,573 posts)The body proportions and forms in this piece are typical of Byzantine art--elongated limbs and markedly round heads, for example. It's a style that deliberately departs from realistic figurative principles.
edhopper
(33,075 posts)Fixed now.
Warren Stupidity
(48,181 posts)pinto
(106,886 posts)okasha
(11,573 posts)Last edited Sun Oct 5, 2014, 07:58 PM - Edit history (1)
edhopper
(33,075 posts)okasha
(11,573 posts)elongated body proportions I mentioned before, which you also noticed in the arm. Then there are the unrealistically rounded heads that can still be seen in some Greek and Russian Orthodox iconography. There's the Greek chi-rho monogram, flanked by an alpha and an omega. If you look at where the left hand should be, there's an open book held so that the viewer can read the inscription. (Which I can't, at the moment; insufficient resolution on my phone.) You find that a lot in Eastern Christian iconography, especially in representations of Christos Pantokrator. Finally, look at the long tunics all three figures are wearing. They're dalmatics, which were worn by courtiers and scholars in Byzantium and are still the appropriate liturgical garment for deacons.
Edited to add: the stylized waves around the rim are a motif found in Aegean/Greek art all the way back to the Mycenaean period.
edhopper
(33,075 posts)Or rather byzantine with eastern influence.
Not that it's from Greece.
It could have been made anywhere in the Eastern Empire. If I had to guess, I'd say Palestine. That's because the one non-Greek element, the two flanking date palms, is frequently found in Byzantine-era Jewish mosaics (on synagogue floors, eg,), and because there was a flourishing glass industry in Palestine.
MADem
(135,425 posts)Who knew there was a glass industry in Palestine? Makes sense, of course--smart folks, lots of raw materials...but, ya know, who knew?
cbayer
(146,218 posts)ability to explain things excellent.
Warren Stupidity
(48,181 posts)At least that is as far as my awful Spanish gets me.