The Symbolism of Certain Catacomb Frescoes

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The Symbolism of Certain Catacomb Frescoes-IAuthor(s): Ethel Ross BarkerSource: The Burlington Magazine for Connoisseurs, Vol. 24, No. 127 (Oct., 1913), pp. 43-45+47-50Published by: The Burlington Magazine Publications Ltd.Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/859450.

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Early Furniturearrivedat by a perfectlysimpleandstraightforwardprocess of carpentry. Such is the genesis of thelinen-panel; and such is virtually the primitivetype in which it appears,for example, in the westdoor of Milton Church by Sittingbourne,Kent, orin the domestic panel-workof Wilsley House andthe Barracks , both at Cranbrookin the samecounty.The precise date of the earliest occurrence ofthe linen-panel cannot be determined; but it isfound as an established ornamental motif by themiddle of the 15th century (perhaps first innorthern France) and remained in current usedown to the close of the 16th century, or evenlater. For at any rate the first fifty years of itscareer,it continued to be an abstract ornament:but the accidental resemblance to the folds ofdraperyhaving once been noticed, the idea waseagerly seized upon and elaborated with charac-teristic exaggeration. The single arris of theoriginal plain panel first became multiplied intothree, four, five or even more arrises. But thiswas not enough. Folds to simulatethe appearanceof a textile spreadout and turned over on itself,were added in increasing complexity as time wenton; a further imitative feature being sometimesintroduced in the shape of an incised or punchedpatternalong the upperand loweredges to suggestan embroideredborder,or theselvedgeof a textile.But from the purest to the most debasedstage ofthe linen-fold pattern,its one invariablefeature isthe central arris; while the treatment of theextremities admits of almost endless variation.The greatest licence in this regardwas indulgedin by German and Flemish woodcarvers. Some-times these fantastic elaborations take the form

of conventional flowers,fruits or foliage, beyondthe extremitiesof the folds. Very rarelyindeedis any extraneousobject allowed to intrude itselfupon the surface of the folds themselves. Thusthe north door of the church of S. Mildred atCanterbury s altogetherexceptional, for there theuppermost row of linen-panels has a Tudorrose in the middle of each, whilst othershave a superimposed shield [PLATE,D]. Thesespecimens are thickly coated with paint, butthe detail, with five arrises, is neverthelessunmistakably clear. A set of panels, showingthree variant forms with a single arris betweenturnover folds [PLATE, A, B & c] is now madeup into stallwork in the chancel of TisburyChurch,Wiltshire. The most striking is one ofthe narrowerones (9 in. wide) with a peculiarlyshortarris[c]. The thirdpanel[B] is II1 in. wide,and all three are I ft. 2- in. high, sight measure.The framedpanels[E], with a friezeof renaissancecharacter,appear to be of about the year 1525.They no doubt belonged to a hall-screen or someother partition in a situation wherethey might beseen on both surfaces,for the stiles at the backare finished with carefully executed mouldings.The second and the lowest tiersof panelsshow thelinen-pattern with fanciful leaf-like ornament atthe extremities,while the third tier from the topcomprises panels of one arris flankedby a some-what involved seriesof turnover olds. The panelsare uniformly 8J in. wide, their height varyingfrom 19 to I9) in. The total height of the com-bined frame of panels is 7 ft. 6 in. by 4 ft. I in.This example is the propertyof Mr. F. ClementsHarper, o whom thanksaredue for his permissionto reproduceit.

THE SYMBOLISM OF CERTAIN CATACOMB FRESCOES-IBY ETHEL ROSS BARKERHE earliest examples of Christianart in Rome-the frescoes of theCatacombs- faithfully reflect some-thing of the complex mind of thatcosmopolitan and, in some respects,syncretistic community. A dispassionateexamina-tion of theirartistic form and of their inner mean-ing reveals some characteristics of the primitiveChristian rather unlike the popular conception ofhim.The first fact that we seem to discern in the ex-amination of the forms-literary, artistic, iturgical,

doctrinal-in which the spiritual conceptions ofChristianityclothed themselves, is the continuityof development, a spiritual evolution, from pre-Christian to Christianthought.So farasartisticstyle goes, theCatacomb rescoesare Hellenistic; there is scarcelyone which wouldarrest the eye as remarkable f found on the walls

of a house in Alexandria or Pompeii. It is truethat the ideas here depicted are very different.The few purely decorative subjects are discreetlyselected: sun, moon and river god are seen, andman's toil through the four seasons; doves andpeacocks flutter among foliage; Cupids andPsyches play among the flowers; shepherds andfishermen carry out their work in exquisite littlepastoralscenes. Oneof themost beautifulexamplesof such decoration s of the Ist century, n the nobleCatacomb on the Via Ardeatina,the property ofFlavia Domitilla,the niece of Domitian. I cannotforbear noting that last year some more graveswerediscoveredhere,andtheyhavebeenidentified,with very little doubt, as those of Narcissus andothersmentionedin S.Paul'sEpistletotheRomans.This Hellenismin style is foundequally n Jewishand Christian subjects, among which there isscarcely one that cannot be connected with a

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The Symbolismof CertainCatacombFrescoessimilar pagan representation. To mention a fewonly : the ark of Noah recalls the chest in whichDanaE rossedthe seawith the infantPerseus;Jonahreclines under his gourd in the pose of gracefulabandonment seen in the drunken fauns belovedof Hellenistic art; his whale recalls the friendlydolphin of Arion; while the risen Lazaruscomesout of a classic tomb, quite unlike any Christiansepulchre of the period.But this Hellenism penetratesdeeperthan mereform,for in the earliestdays the Christianadoptedfor his own and, as we shall see later, interpretedin his own sense, the figure of Hermes bearingthe sheep on his shoulders (HermesKriophoros)[FIGUREI]; that of Orpheus with his lyre; and, inall probability,the fishsymbol and the dove, fromSyriaand India.In this connexion we may note, in passing,howthe persistent semi-paganismof the new convertsafter the Peace of the Church (A.D.313) is reflected,in a temporarypaganreaction, n certainCatacombfrescoes. S. Augustine says :-Look how many Christiansarehalf heathen; they havejoined us with theirbodies,butnever with their heartandsoul.'

Just at this period we find in the Catacombsaperceptible ncrease of purely secular subjects inthe form of delightful littlegenrepictures: flower-sellers, charioteers, wine-sellers, bakers. Moreremarkableare the rare mythological representa-tions, different in spirit from the Orpheus andother pagansymbols of the early converts. In astrangesyncretistic picture of the judgment afterdeath a woman (Vibia) appears before thetribunal of Pluto (Dispater) and Proserpine(Aeracura). She is introduced by Mercury,the messenger, and Alcestis, while oppositestand the three divine Fates The conception,composition and execution are classic, and thenames over each person leave no doubt as to themeaning of the picture. The story is continuedin the adjoiningfresco. Vibia is introduced bya good angel into the gardens of paradise,where, n properChristian ashion,she ispartaking,all in the same picture, of the celestial banquet inthe company of those who have been judged inthe judgment of the good .To returnto the more primitivepagan-Christiansymbolism. These slightmanifestationsof the linkin form, and sometimes in subject, with pre-Christian hought,bearwitness, I think,to a deeperidentity; that of religiousconsciousness. In somesense, Paganism was the matrix out of which thejewel of Christianity developed. There is after alla great similarity in religious experience; and wefind that man's conception of his relation to somepower above himself has ever tended to crystallizeitself into a belief in some divine sacrifice in whichman shares,-materially and spiritually-by some

sort of communion, to approachwhich he mustpurify himself and by which he obtains immor-tality. Symbolizing and expressingthese concep-tions, we finduniversallya formof baptismor puri-fication by water,some dramaof a divine sacrifice,some form of communion-meal. These symbolicacts are then carried out by rites expressive ofman's emotions-dance, procession,music, lights,and so on. At allperiodsthe original conception,symbol and ritualareof necessity inadequate,andfurtherliable to all mannerof distortions.These universal beliefs were embodied in theworship of Osiris, Mithras, and the rest, at themoment when Christianitydawned on the world.To the primitive Christian convert it must haveseemed that his old faiths were not overthrown,but realized and fulfilled. As of old he wasbaptized; was given, as one new-born, the sym-bolic milk and honey of the neophyte ;2 tookpart, year by year, in the divine Passion andResurrection; and was admitted to Communionby means of the Hostiam puramn,Hostiamsanctam,Hostiamimmaculatam -the pure, holy,and immaculate Host :-words found to-day inthe Canon of the Roman Mass, and alreadyancient in the 4th century. Et antiquum docu-nzentum novo cedat ritui' rightly explains hisattitude; and the Neoplatonic philosopher whoknew the uncreated and creativeWord-In prin-cipioerat verbumn-had ittle difficulty n acceptingthe Christianmessage: et verbumnaro actum est.The learnedJustin says :3Allthatphilosophersor legislatorsatanytimedeclaredordiscoveredaright, they accomplishedaccording to theirportionof discoveryand contemplation f the Word.Justin (martyredabout 166) was much occupiedby questionsof comparativereligion,and while hewas wont, as were the other Fathers,to ascribethenumerous errors in paganism to the agency ofdemons, yet he, Clement of Alexandria (2ndcentury), and other writersall hold that Orpheus,the Sibyls, the Greekphilosophers, had receivedsome measure of the revelation of God. So itis that, at the very dawn of Christianity,we finddepicted on graves of martyr,kinsman, or friend,the Good Shepherd,Orpheus, the fish, the dove. . all sacred symbols in pagan worship. Thesesymbols, however, were interpreted in terms ofChristian thought. A recognition of this simplefact would prevent some of the wild comparisonsdrawn between Christianityand paganism.While so much is uncertain, we are here atleast on sure ground; and I think we may saythat all scholars who have an intimate knowledge

of the catacomb frescoes are in agreement as totheir meaning, with the exception of a fewsubjects. As Mgr. Wilpert' and others havepointed out, the significance of these paintings1 Serm. 2 in Migne, Patrologia Latina, t. 38, col. 423.

2 Epist. Barnabas, 6; see later.3 Apol. II in Migne's Patrologia Gracca,t. 6, col. 459.4 Die Malereien der Katakomben Roms.44



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(A) THE EUCHARISTIC BANQUET. BEGINNING OF 2ND CENTURY. IN THE CATACOMB OF S. PRISCILLA

(B) MOSES STRIKING THE ROCK, THE MULTIPLICATION OF THE LOAVES AND FISHES, THE EPIPHANY, ORANTES. NOAH, LAZARUS, DANIEL, TOBIAS, ANDTHE PARALYTIC. MIDDLE OF THE 4TH CENTURY. IN THE CATACOMB UNDER THE VIGNA MASSIMO

THE SYMBOLISM OF CERTAIN CATACOMB FRESCOES-]



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The Symbolismof CertainCatacombFrescoesto the primitive Christian consciousness isrevealed to us in a mass of contemporary litera-ture-patristic writings, epigraphy, liturgy, andActs of the Martyrs. In dealing with this largesubject we will briefly summarize the resultsobtained, in a classification of the subject matterof the frescoes, and note what further light isthrown by them on the mentality of the primitiveChristian. We will then discuss in detail certainof the frescoes, as an illustrationof the method ofinvestigation, and as a justification of the state-ments made in the classification.We may first remind the reader that the Cata-combs which we are considering, about thirty innumber,lie within a limit of three miles from theAurelianwall, all along the roads which radiatefrom Rome to the farthest cities of the empire.The comparativelysmall portions excavated haveyielded many hundred frescoes of the first fourcenturies (during which period the catacombswere used as a place of burial); and a few of thesubsequent four centuries, when they were aplace of pilgrimage. It is with the earlierfrescoes only we are concerned here.The style of representation,aswell as the primi-tive method of interpretation, s symbolic, allusive,allegorical. As an example: the two miracles ofthe feeding of the multitudesare alluded to underthe symbol of seven (occasionally eight or ten)basketsof bread; sometimes the figureof Christtouches one of the basketswith a long rod. Thusthese frescoes reveal the mind of the primitiveChristian, which delighted in symbolism andallegory.If we exclude a very few subjects at presentunexplained, or apparently unimportant, andthose decorative and genre pictures referred toabove, the remaining frescoes give us, at a veryrough estimation, something like fifty subjectsrepeatedly represented. As regards the datingwe may note, in passing, that three of thesesubjects [PLATE,B]-Noah in the ark, Danielin the lions' den, the Good Shepherd-appearamong the few Ist-century frescoes remain-ing. Most of the familiar symbols--Orpheus,the fish, the anchor, the dove, the orante-appear very early in the 2nd century; and bythe end of the 3rd we have examples of nearlyevery known fresco. This period,well illustratedtoo in the literature, is the high-water mark ofprimitive Christian art. A very large number offrescoes, but only a few new subjects, belong tothe 4th century. The frescoes do not represent anumber of disconnected incidents chosen atrandom, but fall into three definite groups-eachbeing an exposition of some aspect of Christiandoctrine. These subjects continually appeararranged in a cycle of perhaps half a dozenselected symbols on some single grave or chapel,and the Christian could read off, in those col-

located symbols, rightly interpreted, the mainarticlesof his faith. These groups consist of:-I. Those frescoes dealingwith the LIFE OF THEDEPARTED. These form the vast majority, asmight be expectedin a place of the dead,and depictevery phase of their existence. In addition to thefrescoes to be discussed later,we may place in thisgroup the primitive dove, the anchor, the palmand that oft-repeated woman's (rarely a man's)figure with suppliant hands-the orante-whichprobably represents the soul [anima, feminine]of the departed (occurring 153 times).II. Those frescoes representing OUR LORD,either more or less realistically, or symbolically.Some of these are very beautiful,but the numberis surprisingly few. Among them are represented :--Orpheus, who is a symbol of our Lordand the Incarnation (see later). This doctrine isexpressedmore realistically n frescoesof the Birthin the Stable (one only), the Adoration of the Magi(one being of the early 2nd century) and theMadonna and the Child. (The significance ofone of these so-called Madonnasis, I think, verydubious.) Further, there are represented theactual Baptismof our Lord (fromearly2ndcentury)(4 times), and various miracles of healing, nearlyevery one of these interpreted in a sacramentalsense (see later). There is a doubtful Crowningwith Thorns, and a Denial of S. Peter. OurLordis represented (over Ioo times) as the GoodShepherd(from the Ist century). Chiefly in themore literal and practical 4th century He isdepicted as teacherand law-giver among apostles,or evangelists: also as judging the dead, andrewarding the martyrs. Connected with thisChristologicalgrouparethesixteenrepresentations,so classic in execution, of Adamand Eve, symbolsof that Fall of Man ( 0 felix Culpa ) whichcaused the Incarnation.III. The frescoes of the SACRAMENTALgroup(from 2nd century) represent, directly, or usuallysymbolically, the sacramentsof the Eucharist andBaptism. Among the eucharisticfrescoesmay beplaced,with certainty,severalof those representingbanquets [PLATE, A]. A few of those banquetscenes represent,not the Eucharist,butthe celestialbanquet in Paradise; a few the love-feast (theagape); but the subject bristles with difficulties.Other eucharistic symbols are the Sacrificeof Abraham (22 times), and the Changing ofwater into wine at Cana of Galilee. But thefavourite sacramental types are the fish symbol(see later), occurring, either as a type of baptismor of the Eucharist, very many times; themiracles of the multiplication of the loavesand fishes; and the meal after the Resurrectionby Lake Tiberias (see later). Other types ofBaptism are Noah in the Ark (also a typeof deliverance from peril (32); Moses strikingthe rock: (also, as we see in the liturgies, a

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The Symbolismof Certain CatacombFrescoestype of deliverance from peril and 'refresh-ment for the soul of the departed (68); theHealing of the Blind Man (7) (see later); and theParalytic at the Pool of Bethesda (15). The actualincident of Baptism is representedin that of ourLord (4), and of a Catechumen (4) (from 2ndcentury).

It would be difficult to find any other subjectinthe Catacombs: for the numerous apparentlyhistorical incidents taken from those books whichbecame laterthe Canon of the Scriptures(includ-ing Apocrypha,which, of course, is still retainedin the Catholic Bible), are all to be interpretedeither in a sacramentalsense, or as a symbol forthe departing soul of the deliverance God everbrought to His servants (see later).These frescoes are at one with the very earliestliterature in revealing the minds of these firstChristians as much preoccupied with doctrinalquestions. The spirit, too, which in a place ofburial repeatedly represented the Sacraments,must have held those Sacraments as the heartand soul of their faith. This last fact wemight have alreadyforeseenwhen we consider therelations of Christianityto paganismto which wehave referredabove. It is difficult to imagine thatthe Jew, with his sacrificial ystem,and the Gentilewith his need (as revealed in his religions) of asacramentalsystem, could have been satisfiedby afaith which was not based on sacramentalism.It has been remarkedby some writersthat in theCatacombs there are no representationsof theecclesiasticalhierarchy. To refer to one amonga hundred proofs that such a hierarchy existedfrom Apostolic days,we need only referthe readerto theTeaching ftheApostles5of the verybeginningof the 2nd century for minute details thereon.In the Catacombs themselves we find numerousinscriptions of bishops, priests, deacons, sub-deacons, readers, exorcists, clerks (notarii) andsextons (fossores).6 Afterall, we do not depict onthe graves of our dead, portraits of archbishop,bishop or parishpriest-nor even ordination,northe marriagerites.Proceeding to the second partof our discussion,it remainsnow to justify these statements by anexamination of a few fresco subjects in the lightof the literaturecontemporarywith them, as anillustrationof method, and so give a mere indica-tion-a hint--of all that might be said on eachsubject. First let us consider the origin andsignificance of the Shepherd bearing the Sheep(of the Ist century and later). This youth-ful Good Shepherd with the lamb across hisshoulders [FIGUREI] is purely Hellenistic in artisticconception; its ancestry can be tracedat least asfar back as the archaic figureof Hermesbearingasheep - Hermes the producer of fruitfulness in

the flocks. There is a gulf fixedbetween that ideaand the Christianinterpretation I am the goodShepherd . There is scarcely an early Christianwriter who has not meditatedon this symbol, butthe words of the ancientprayerfor the dead in theGelasian Sacrament' are surely inspired by theactual fresco, Be mercifulto him . . . ShowThyself to him the Good Shepherd and bear himon Thy shoulders . This Shepherd bearing thesheep,and often carryinga Pan'spipe andstandingbetween twoother sheep ina little pastoralpicture scloselyrelated to thesubject of theShepherd withpipe or pastoralstaff in hishands guardinghis flock - afigurefruitful insymbolism. Oneinterpretationout of many isfound in theauthentic Actsof Polycarp(2nd century),in which ourLord is de- FIGURE Iscribed as the Shepherdof the Catholic Churchall over the world . This aspect of the GoodShepherd is emphasized by the rolls of parch.ment often depicted in His hand or at His side:Jesus Christ... the Good Shepherdand law-giverof the one flock , says Clementof Alexandria 2ndcentury); and we find Abercius, Bishop ofHierapolis (2nd century),describing himself as adisciple of the Good Shepherd . (See later.)Somewhat akin to this are the five frescoes ofOrpheus represented, as in innumerable classicdesigns, in his long white robe, mantle andPhrygian cap, and bearing his lyre. He is usuallysurrounded by sheep only, but in the Domitillafresco (4th century) by a delightful varietyof beastand bird. Eusebius8 gives the Christian inter-pretation; namely, that the Orpheus-Christis atype of the Incarnation:-Greek fables relate .. that Orpheus with his lyretamed the wild beasts, and with the charm of his songdrew the oak-treesafterhim. Whereforethe all-wiseandall-harmoniousWordof Godjthe Logos],when He healedwith divers remedies the minds of men corruptedwithmanifold niquities,tookin His handa musical instrumentfashioned by His own wisdom, even His human nature,and on it played a bewitching music; not, as Orpheus, othe brutes,but to minds endowedwith reason. And Hetamed alike Greeksand barbarians,and healed with themedicineof celestialdoctrine he fierceandbrutal nstinctsof theirspirits.

5 The Didache,ed. Gibson.* Marucchi, Epigrafia cristiana.7 Muratori, Liturgia Romana vetus, I, p. 44o, ed. 176o.8 De Laud. Constan., XIV., in Pat. Grcac. . 20, col. 1409.

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The Symbolismof CertainCatacombFrescoesEusebius is apparentlyonly developing ClementofAlexandria 2nd century),who calls the Logos--the Word Incarnate- the musician harmonizingall things, the singer of the new song .Again, the FISHas depictedin the Catacombs isno longer the symbol of some oriental fish deity,but, as we shall see, an image of Christ Himself asrevealed in Baptismand the Eucharist. As a typeof Baptism the Fish-sometimes resembling adolphin in form-is representedalone; or,as in afresco of the Chapel of the Sacraments (2ndcentury) in S. Callixtus, as being drawn by afisherman out of water flowing from a rock: inthat water is depicted the Baptism of Christ.Let us see what the fathers have to say on thispoint. First Tertullian (16o-240) writes:--9But we, little fish, are born in water according to ourFish (IXOTN) Jesus Christ.Elsewhere we find:-

The elect are the celestial race of the divine Fish : theyare the little fish born in the water which flows from thatrock which is Christ, formed in his image, drawing fromthe quenchless source the knowledge of eternal wisdom.Besides Tertullian, Cyprian, Origen (both earlythird century) and others repeatedly explainthe story of Moses bringing water from therock as a type of Baptism; and the subjectoccurs in the Catacombs no less than sixty-eight times. Moses himself is a type of Peter,10sis testifiedby severalof the earlierfathers. More-over, on one or two of the gilded glasses (vetri)found in the Catacombs the scene of Moses strik-ing the rock is depicted, but the word PETRUSis inscribed over Moses. I am inclined to thinkthat the curious frescoes representing OurLord touching the water-pots with a long rod (asymbolic representationof the miracleat Cana ofGalilee) indicates the symbolic identity of Moses-Peter-Christ, and further that this method ofrepresentation knits together the sacraments ofBaptismand the Eucharistin the personof Christ:an idea which seems to appear in the doublesignificance, baptismal- eucharistic, of the fishsymbol, as we shall see.Clementof Alexandria (2nd century) refers tothe fish and other pagan symbols (all of whichwe find in the Catacombs) in his directions toChristianwomen as to what rings they may suit-ably wear.n11But let our signet rings bear a dove, or a fish, or aship . . . or a lyre [symbol of Orpheus] . . . or an anchor...and if there is a fisherman on it, remember theapostle (Peter) and his (spiritual) sons who are drawn forthfrom the water.And in his hymn to Christ the Saviour (op.cit.III, 12) we read :-S.. Fisher of Men who are saved; Who dost feedwith sweet life the holy fishes saved from the perilous waveof the sea of vice ...

To the Eucharistic idea in this hymn we willreturn. Later, Paulinus, bishop of Nola (353-431),writes to bishop Delphinus as follows :- nI remember that I am made the son of the dolphin(Delphinus) that I might become one of those fishes whichpass through the paths of the sea [Psalms]. I remem-ber you are not only my father but my fisher [non patersed Peter]. For you have put your hook into me to drawme forth from the deep and bitter waters of the world,that I might be made captive unto salvation. But if I amthy fish I should bring in my mouth the precious denarius,shining, not with the image and superscription of Caesar,but with the living and life-giving image of the eternalKing, namely, faith and truth (fidem veritatis).There is, I think,an identification n the writer'smind between bishop Delphinus, the dolphin (asa symbol of Christ),and Peter, as preeminentlythe fisher of men . The whole passage refers toBaptism. There is no real confusion of thought inrepresentingChristas at once Fishermanand Fish.Again Optatusof Milevis (4thcentury) nterpretsthe fish which little Tobias carried and whichhealed his fatherTobit of blindness, as symbolicof Christ.'1 This explanationof the symbolof thefish is in harmonywith the earlier fathers, but itis in contradiction to the actual story of Tobias,who was saved by God frombeing devouredby amonstrous fish : and so Tobias (representedthreetimes in the Catacombs) becomes one of theinnumerabletypes of deliverance in time of perilwhich we shall consider presently. This explana-tion of Optatus implicitlyconnects the fishsymbolwith Baptism,since one of the effects of Baptismwas illumination, as explained by Justin Martyr- and that washing of baptism is called illumina-tion. Indeed, the healing of the blind man, asrelated in the Gospels,was considered a symbol ofbaptism by Clement of Alexandria,Ambrose andAugustine, and the subject is found seven timesin the Catacombs. If therewere anydoubtaboutthis implicit allusion, Optatuscontinues :-He is that Fish who, at baptism, by invocation isplunged into the waters, so that that which was simplywater is called piscina from piscis [fish]. And the name ofthat Fish in Greek contains in one word a host of holynames, for it is in Latin Jesus Christus Dei Filius Salvator.Piscina, of course, is merely an old classicalword for a fishpond iThe so called Sibylline acrostic (a set of versesin which the thirty nitial letters of the lines formed,in Latin, the words JESUSCHRISTUS DEI FILIUSSALVATOR)xisted,probablyas a Christianforgery,possibly as early as the 2nd century. The factthat, in the Greek, this acrostic itself formed asecond acrostic, IXOYO(fish), was also earlyobserved. We find this play on the word in the2nd-century Greek inscription of Autun, to beconsidered later: it becomes a commonplace inthe fathers of the 4th and 5th century. It seemsprobable, but by no means proved, however, thatthe symbol of the fish was adopted either as being9 De Baptis., I, Pat. Lat., t. I, col. 1198.10 Macarius of Egypt, Horn. 26, c. 23 in Pat. Gr., t. 34,col. 690.1 Pced. III, II, Pat. Gr., t. 8, col. 634.

12 Ep. XX, Pat. Lat., t. 61, col. 249.13 De schis, Donat., III. 2, in Pat. Lat., ii (cf. Apocrypha,Book of Tobit).14 Apol. I, 61, in Pat. Gr., t. 6, col. 422.

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The Symbolismof CertainCatacombFrescoesa sacred pagan symbol, or on account of theGospel associations with fish and fishermen; andthat the presence of the divine name discovered inthe word was only an additional consecration,and not the origin, of the symbol.

In the next article we will discuss the fish asa Eucharistic symbol.[The illustrations are reproduced, by permission,from Le Pitture delle Catacombe Romane , byMgr. Guiseppe Wilpert.]

REVIEWSADMONITIONS OF THE INSTRUCTRESS IN THE PALACE. A Paintingby Ku K'ai-Chih in the Department of Prints and Drawings,British Museum, reproduced in coloured woodcut. Text byLAURENCEBINYON, Assistant - keeper in the Department.London: Printed by order of the Trustees of the BritishMuseum.THE scroll ascribed to Ku K'ai-Chih is the greatestmeasure of Chinese painting in this country.Acquired at a small price in 1903 merely as anancient Chinese painting, its authenticity as theoldest known painting by a great Chinese masterhas gradually been confirmed and established sothat it now takes rank as one of the most importantmonuments of Chinese painting in existence.Hitherto it has been reproduced only partially andin black and white; the fullest account of it beingthat by Mr. Laurence Binyon in The BurlingtonMagazine, January, 1904. It was, therefore, afelicitous idea on the part of the Trustees of theBritish Museum to have the present admirable fac-simile executed. In colour reproduction by meansof woodcut the Japanese are indubitably supreme,and the Trustees have done well in confiding thework to the Kokka Company, through whosemarvellous reproductions we in Europe gain mostof our ideas of the masterpieces of Chinese art.The Japanese artists have accomplished this taskwith their usual skill and fidelity. So fastidious,indeed, is their connoisseur's reverence for an ancientmasterpiece that they have given to their workalmost the appearance of an original copy by someartist of the Ming time rather than of a mere repro-duction. They have been so careful to avoid any-thing of the crudity of a modern reproduction, topreserve as far as possible the patina of extremeage that they have tended if anything to under-state the sharpness and accent of the original. Theresult is not only a remarkable record and remi-niscence of the original, but a work which in itselfhas the seductive charm of an exquisite bibelot.The reproduction has been made, in short, in thespirit of the great Imperial connoisseur, Ch'ienLung, who used to pore so reverently over Ku K'ai-Chih's handiwork in the Lai-ch'ing pavilion, andwho at an odd moment in summer sketched in inkaspray of Epidendrum as an expression of sympathywith its profound and mysterious import . Andindeed the work itself is well fitted to arouse sucha connoisseur's reverence as that of Ch'ien Lungand of the modern Japanese reproducer. Andherein lies the marvel of the work and the explana-tion of the almost certainly illfounded scepticismwith which its attribution to the 4th century of our

era was at first received. Who would have thoughtthat China had at that date arrived at this pitch ofsubtlety and refinement, had already conceived thespirit of the i8th century? But the doubts of itsauthenticity being now silenced-and Mr. Binyon'slucid and impartial statement of the case in thetext of this work leaves little room for hesitation-we must make our conception of the developmentof Chinese art fit with this surprising fact. IndeedI8th centuryness seems to have been endemic inChina. Confucianism was full of it, and Taoism,though it started with something too mystical andpassionate to accord with that principle, adapteditself in process of time to this prevalent toneof Chinese civilization. Only the irruption ofBuddhism for a time swept it away and gave usthe profoundly spiritual art of the Wei and T'angdynasties. We see then in the Ku K'ai-Chih anart of complete self-consciousness, with a delicate,almost ironical understanding the niceties ofmanner and of the subtleties of facial and bodilyexpression. It is like the work of some moresensitive, more sophisticated Carpaccio. And yetthere comes through here and there-most definitelyin the drawing of the utensils in the toilet scene-something of that great primitive sense of style andform which represents the other element in Chineseart, the element opposed to Chinoiserie and 18thcenturyness. It was this other element which wasdestined to supplant all the delicate fine-spun sophis-tications of Ku K'ai-Chih's art and replace it, in littlemore than acentury, by the impressive and rugged in-tensity ofthe works at Li Lung Mien. This wasclearlyone of the great revolutions in the history of art,a revolution which we may some day be able to tracein detail. At present we can only note the greatgulf that has to be bridged between the Admonitionsof the Instructress, perhaps one of the latest worksof its kind, and the great imaginative work of the6th, 7th and 8th centuries. There is much that isdifficult to explain in the art of the period pre-ceding Ku K'ai-Chih. One would naturally inferfrom an examination of the Admonitions that it wasthe result of a long tradition of such exquisitelyrefined illustration, and indeed some of thefigurines in black earthenware which belong evento the pre-Han or very early Han periods show anextraordinary likeness to the elegant court ladiesof Ku K'ai-Chih's scroll. And this would leadus to suppose that a similar delicate art persistedthroughout the whole Han period. On the otherhand many of the figures which are attributed to

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The Symbolism of Certain Catacomb Frescoes

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