The record-union., 1898-03-21

l.
the contrary cultivated and practiced
the fine arts.
By the study of inscriptions and burial
monuments no ordinary light has been
thrown upon the history CT the early her
esiss. Much Of the writings of the early
centuries is in the nature Of apolOgetic.
The personality of the writer, his bias,
his passion, often enter largely into the
writing and the position Of his adversary
is not unfrequently utterly misrepre-
scented. The incised marble of the rude
fresco often serve TO correct these mis-
representations, thus telling uncon-
scicusly the true story of the life of the
early church.
The geographical field of Christian
archaeology is naturally that territory
once occupied by the early Christian
church and in which remains now exist.
Early Christian documents, inscriptions,
churches, nosaics, frescoes, etc, are the
material which is to be interpreted Yet,
Ne must confess the appointment that
the actual finds have been so few COM
pared with the territory. Great areas of
early Christian life and activity are al
most entirely barren Of Christian mon
uments of any character.
We know that in the fifth and sixth
centuries were 1ourishing churches in
Palestine, of which scarcely a trace re-
mains. Italy, Northern Africa, Asia
Minor, Gaul, Spain and the Dalmatian
Coast are the chief areas for the Christ
ian Archaeological. The forces of nature,
the devastating eruption of the bar
barous hoTdes from the north, the per-
secutions of the imperial Powers and the
wars and rivalries of opposing sects have
served to sweep away many noble and
valuable Christian monuments.
Italy has furnished us with the chief
monuments in the way of Christian art
and geography. From the days Of Bosio
GOID to the present time the catacombs
have been a rich mine of Christian arch
aeology, while the city of Rome itself
has given up in the course of excavation
many valuable relics of the early church.
De Rossi may be said to have founded
the scientific study of these remains.
With interchangeable patience and erudi-
ton he has reduced to systematic form
the labors of his predecessors and his
with unerring instinct opened some re-
markable discoveries.
Recent work in the catacOmbs has
been carried on especially by Wilpert,
in the discovering and interpreting OF
catacomb frescoes. Much of the earlier
work in this direction is inaccurate and
has been copied by all who have fol-
lowed De Rossi. Wilpert has also done
much to throw light on Christian SYM
bolism.
In Roman Africa and Gaul, lie Blant
has been and is the great authority in
the Christian epigI Apply of these regions.
publishing several hundred inscriptions,
chiefly from the fourth to the sixth CEN
turtles.
The work of Huebner on the Christian
archaeology of Spain has brought to
our knowledge about 800 inscriptions
from the fourth to the eighth centuries.
These are mostly dated and suffice to
show that there was a large number of
fiourishing churches in Spain during
this period.
The Dalmatian Coast has in recent
years given Us many valuable finds The
antiquities of Aquileit, which in the
fifth century was a second Rome, have
been for many years known through the
labors of BertoH, Zandonati, Gregorutti
and others Two thousand Inscriptions
have been unearthed here and new ones
are being daily brought to light at Da-
Iona, Merusinac and other places under
the auspices of the Austrian imperial
archaeological commission. In formulae,
symbolism and style they differ decided
ly from those at Rome, frequently Civ
ing light as to the subjects and mode of
Christian baptism of the period, which
IS the fifth and fourth centuries.
Asia Minor has been recently explor-
ed by W. NJ. Ramsay, who in his Cities
~, IDI, 7
1880 has published 100 Christian in
scriptions from the southwestern and
west central districts of Phrygia Ram
say shows that with these inscriptions
it is possible to fix with complete or
approximate certainty the Christian Of
igin of a large number of documents of
the third century These Phrygian de-
scriptions belong to the period before
Christianity was legalized by Constan-
tine. In this period a Christian was
esteemed by law a traitor and an out
law. The inscription did not, there
fore, to the uninitiated, bear on it's
face the evidence of it's Christian char
acter. He shows that something like
a symbolic language of epitaphs was
devised. so that the Christian tombs
were marked by variations from the
customary sepulchral formula, appar-
emily insignificant in themselves and
easily Guiding notice, but giving a
Christian turn to the language ana
clearly significant to the brethren This
system seems to begin about 200 A D., !
and to be confined to certain districts
of Phrygia, where the population was
to very large extent Christian, and
where there was less chance of mall !
evolent pagans setting the law in mo-
ton against suspected Christians
To quote Ramsay. in Contemporary
Review September, 1896 The i'm |
portance of these documents lies in the !
fact that they reveal to us the charac- |
ter Of the commonplace, undistingush- |