CONTENTS. IV. COMPOSITION D.- OF THE TWO APOSTLES V. COMPOSITION E.-OF THE SCRIPTURES VI. COMPOSITION F.-OF THE EUCHARIST VII. COMPOSITION G.-OF THE SACRAMENTS VIII. COMPOSITION H.-OF THE MARTYRS IX. COMPOSITION I.-OF THE VIRGINS AN INTRODUCTION ΤΟ EARLY CHRISTIAN SYMBOLISM. 66 I. COMPOSITION A. — Of the Dispensation. THESE three paintings, A 1, 2, and 3, all occur together in the Cemetery of S. Callistus; A 1 on the end wall, A 2 and 3 on the two side walls of one and the same arcisolium," or arched tomb. The Rock, which is Christ, being visible in all the three paintings, shows them at the first glance to be one composition, though in the publication of M. Perret the two lateral paintings only are given, and the central one (which has been damaged by the cutting in of a later niche through the breasts of the figures) is omitted. Owing to this omission it was necessary, in 1855, to send the artist employed to copy this whole Composition in the Cemetery itself, permission having been obtained through the kindness of P. Marchi. Since then a copy, of the full size of the original, and showing exactly the damage done to it, has been placed in the Christian Museum of the Lateran. In the present work, the purpose of which is not antiquarian, the central painting is B restored. This was done with ease and certainty, as the later tomb, cut through its centre in the original, has left the attitudes of the figures unimpaired. In the original of A 3, also, a small arched recess, perhaps intended to serve as a credence, has been cut, which has been filled up, and in one unimportant point conjecturally, as it is not clear whether the rod in the hand of the central figure is directed towards one of the baskets brought by the other two men, or towards the nearest of those other baskets which stand on the ground. The damage done to the paintings of this and other tombs, in order to bury near the martyrs their occupants, is a sign of the greater antiquity of the tombs and paintings so damaged. For while the date of the niches cut in is probably not later than some time in the fourth century, before the underground cemeteries had ceased to be in general use, it is also clear that when they were cut the arched tomb of the martyrs which was damaged was already so old that nobody was likely to be annoyed by its mutilation. Supposing, then, the later niche over and within this arched tomb to have been cut in about the middle of the fourth century, we may probably refer the original tomb, with its paintings, to the middle of the third. Thus much premised, we go on to describe the paintings. In the middle of A 1 we see Christ as the Good Shepherd, with the lost sheep of human nature on his shoulders. Hereby is signified the universal redemption, in which even Judas himself is included. But in the two sheep which stand one on either side of the Good Shepherd, at his feet, turning their heads towards him, we see the flock of his elect, all who shall belong to Christ by faith and good works, and shall be found in him at the end. The number two, which here signifies all, hints also those twofold divisions which are applicable, viz. those of the antediluvian and the postdiluvian worlds; of the Patriarchal or Gentile covenant made with Noah, and the covenant of Circumcision made with Abraham; again, the Mosaic and the Christian Dispensations; and, in the Christian, the double Church, of the Circumcision, represented by S. Peter, and of the Uncircumcision, represented by S. Paul; the two sexes, men and women; those that persevere after Baptism without falling, and those that fall but are restored by repentance. And as, after the Ascension and the day of Pentecost, Christ collects and feeds this flock of his elect, not personally on earth, but through the ministry of his Apostles and of the hierarchy, we see two men, who are the two Apostles Peter and Paul, representing the whole Apostolate from the beginning to the end, hastening away from Christ, as sent by him to the world. On either side, before each of the two, there rises a rock, which is Christ himself, the true Rock of the desert, pouring down spontaneously, as on the day of Pentecost, after the Ascension, streams of living waters. These waters, which he pours down from the Father, are the gifts of the Holy Ghost, including all the sacraments and graces of Christianity. The Apostles are seen joining their hands together to catch this water, in order to turn it afterwards on to our heads, i. e. in order to communicate it to the world. The world to which they are sent is represented by two sheep standing before each of them. On one side, to our right, one of the two sheep is listening attentively, not quite understanding as yet, but meditating, and seeking to understand: the other turns his tail: it is an unwelcome subject, and he will have nothing to do with it. On the other side, to our left, one of the two sheep is drinking in all that he hears B 2 |