The Madison daily leader. [volume] (Madison, S.D.) 1890-current, 1917-01-23
CHALICE BEARS
IMAGE OF CHRIST
Said TO Be Only Real Portrait
Of Saviour.
IT WAS FOUND IN RUINS


From Ruins of Ancient Antioch Fash
ioned About Fifty Years After Christ.
What, it Is thought, may be accurate
portraits OF Christ and the apostles
have been discovered on an old chalice
dug up from the ruins Of Antioch and
now in the possession of an art dealer
treasure the chalice came into the pos
session of the present owners direct
from the hands of the eXcavators Ma
1910, and sculptured in its ornamental
work are the portraits.
1t is probable that the old chalice. on
communion cup, some of whose worn
figures bear witness to the imprint Vt
the kisses of early Christians, is relic
of cathedral erected In Antioch by
Constantine the Great after bis re.
moyal Of the capital Of his empire to
Constantinople. This Antioch church
was intended to he the center OF Chris
tian worship I'm the east and remained
standing until the year 52G, when dur
ing an assemblage Of 100000 Chris
tians the city was leveled by an earth
quake so disastrous that one building
could not be distinguished from an
other among the ruins.
1t was natural that chalice of such
great value and sanctity In the posses
sion Of the first Christian emperor
would have been left by him in the
city where the word Christian was first
used and which was endeared to him
by its associations with St Peter, ST.
Paul and other apostles who resided
there. This cbalice and other treas
ures discover at the same excavation
were removed TO this country from
Paris for greater safety at the out
break Of the war.
The challce of the portraits can be
dated with certainty to the second half
of the first century A. d., says Or.
GustaNus A. Eisen. the archaeologlst,
who Is now in this country and who
has made preliminary report upon II
n the American Journal OF Archaeol.
ogy. Ii was found by Arabs digging
well in Antioch on the Arontes, Syria.
At the depth of many meters they
came upon underground chambers
which contained the treasure.
ChaIice Is In Three Parts.
The chalice with the portraits il
made in three parts. There is an inner
bowl Of plain silver, crudely made,
with heavy outer casing of beautiful
sculptured work In which, woven in
with a design of vine leaves and
grapes, are the portraits of Christ and
the disciples. The whole is supported
ON a short, slender stem and narrow
foot disk turned out on a lathe from
solid block of silver. On the lower part
of the bowl OF the chalice is cluster
Of lotus leaves.
The body Of the chalice, while beau
tiful in form, is crudely made, ham
mered from thick sheet Of silver, the
edge turned rudely back without at
/ tempt at ornamentation or smooth fin
/ ish. 1t was not the property of the
rich. The fact of its preservation ana
the beautiful sculptured work, added
to it later. with the portraits of Christ
and the disciples upon 1t, makes it evi-
dent that it was in some way closely
allied to them.
The sculptured work is Greek, that
of an artist, DR.. Eisen believes, and
the individuality shown In the faces
makes it certain that they were taken
| from life or from portraits of which
those In wax of the period were excel
lent. The reason for there being only
ten of the apostles shown is possibly,
it is said, because the artist was famil-
lar with the faces Of Of only that mum
ber or had seen only that number of
portraits,
suit Of accident" SAYS DIR. Eisen, ''and
1t is the first time that 1t has been
shown In early Christian art"
There are two groups Of figures one
ON either side OF the chalice, each con-
tanning central figure, with five apos-
ties facing it. One figure of the mature
Christ is in the more prominent OF the
two groups.
Symbolicai Figures In Design.
Many of the apostles hold scrolls in
their hands, one holds purse and one
handle that may be that Of a sword.
Doves, snails, rabbit, butterfly and
grasshopper are among the animals
shown. There is a band Of fifty-seven
rosettes at the top Of the chalice, Of
about equal size. and at one point is a
star such as was seen on pre-Roman
Antioch coins. The rosettes, which are
noticeably crowded, may have refer
ence to the year. 1t Is thought.
The chalice Is nineteen centimeters
high and the top Of the bowl eighteen
centimeters.
1t was with great difficulty that the
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