Early Christian Symbols - Chi-Rho and the Mosaics of San Vitale

For our son's Art History, we've been enjoying slowing working our way through Laurie Adams' A History of Western Art. It was in the chapter on Early Christian and Byzantine Art that discovered the beautiful mosaics of San Vitale.

In the picture at the left, the green shield is decorated with Constantine's Chi-Rho. Constantine was very important in the history of early Christianity because his Edict of Milan made it safe for Christians to open practice Christianity. A precise account of Constantine's relationship to Christianity is not known, but according to Eusebius, Constantine saw two visions before his battle with Maxentius. In one, the Cross appeared against a light with the words "In this sign you conque," while on the other, he was told to place Chi-Rho - the first two letters of Christ's Greek name on the shields of his soldiers. Eusebius also told of Constantine's baptism as a Christian.

For more views of the mosaics, check the following link: San Vitale Basilica.

For more, read here about Early Christian Symbols.The fish is an acrostic: in Latin fish is icthus; in Greek, Iota Chi Theta Upsiolon Sigma is an acrostic for Jesus Christ, of God, the Son, the Savior (Iesous Christos, Theou Uiou Soter). The drawing of two fish and an anchor (at right) was another early Christian symbol seen in an ancient Roman catacomb.





The two images above were taken from Dr. Ralph Wilson's Ichthus as Early Christian Symbols.