page_title: Christ treading on the beasts
hierarchical_section_title: Christ treading on the beasts
caption_attribution_description: Constantine I 307-337 AD. Æ en:Follis (2.97 gm). Struck 337 AD. Constantinople mint. CONSTANTI-NVS MAX AVG, laureate head right SPES PVBLICA across field, labarum, with three medallions on drapery and crowned by a christogram, spearing serpent. CONS in exergue. RIC VII 19. According to RIC, this famous reverse type represents the defeat of tyranny by the death of Licinius. Yet, the scene also has powerful Christian imagery in that it allegorically portrays the power of Christianity over evil. Coin from CNG coins, through Wildwinds. Used with permission. Follis 337 Constantine
context_page_description: Christ treading on the beasts is a subject found in Late Antique and Early Medieval art, though it is never common. It is a variant of the "Christ in Triumph" subject of the resurrected Christ, and shows a standing Christ with his feet on animals, often holding a cross-staff which may have a spear-head at the bottom of its shaft, or a staff or spear with a cross-motif on a pennon. Some art historians argue that the subject exists in an even rarer pacific form as "Christ recognised by the beasts".
context_section_description: Christ treading on the beasts is a subject found in Late Antique and Early Medieval art, though it is never common.  It is a variant of the "Christ in Triumph" subject of the resurrected Christ, and shows a standing Christ with his feet on animals, often holding a cross-staff which may have a spear-head at the bottom of its shaft, or a staff or spear with a cross-motif on a pennon.  Some art historians argue that the subject exists in an even rarer pacific form as "Christ recognised by the beasts".
caption: A coin of Constantine (c.337) showing a depiction of his labarum spearing a serpent.
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