Christianity in its first three centuries was one of a large number of mystery religions that flourished in the Roman world. Persecutions of Christians ended in Rome with Emperor Constantine. Fourth-century churches, tombs and catacombs decorated with Christian imagery can still be visited.
An early representation of Christ found in the Catacomb of Domitilla shows the figure of Christ flanked by a group of his disciples or students. Those experienced with later Christian imagery might mistake this for an image of the Last Supper, but instead this image...
Christianity in its first three centuries was one of a large number of mystery religions that flourished in the Roman world. Persecutions of Christians ended in Rome with Emperor Constantine. Fourth-century churches, tombs and catacombs decorated with Christian imagery can still be visited....
The opulent interior of the Constantinian basilicas would have created an effective space for increasingly elaborate rituals. Influenced by the splendor of the rituals associated with the emperor, the liturgy placed emphasis on the dramatic entrances and the stages of the rituals. ...