Early Christian art

also called Paleo-Christian art or Primitive

Christian art, architecture, painting and
sculpture from the beginnings of Christianity
until about the early 6th century, particularly
the art of Italy and the Western
Mediterranean.
• Early Christian art in the eastern part of the Roman
Empire is usually considered to be part of Byzantine arts.

Byzantine arts- refers to the body of

Christian Greek artistic products of
the Eastern Roman (Byzantine) Empire,
as well as the nations and states that
inherited culturally from the empire. 
Christ Pantocrator
Patronage is the support, encouragement,
privilege, or financial aid that an organization or
individual bestows to another. In the history of art.
 
Arts patronage refers to the support that kings,
popes, and the wealthy have provided to artists
such as musicians, painters, and sculptors. It can
also refer to the right of bestowing offices
or church benefices, the business given to a store by
a regular customer, and the guardianship of saints.
Early Christianity used the same artistic media as
the surrounding pagan culture. These media
included:
• fresco
• mosaics
• sculpture
• manuscript illumination.
 Late classical style
In early Christian frescos, such as those in
the Catacombs of Rome, which include
most examples of the earliest Christian art.

The Catacombs of Rome - an
underground burial places
under Rome, Italy, of which there are
at least forty, some discovered only in
recent decades.
Catacombs
The original Roman custom
was cremation, after which the burnt
remains were kept in a pot, ash-chest
or urn, often in a columbarium. columbarium

A sarcophagus - is a box-like funeral

receptacle for a corpse, most commonly sarcophagus
carved in stone, and usually displayed
above ground, though it may also be
buried.
sarcophagus
ARCHITECTURE
• Early in the 20th century it was thought
that Christian art and architecture began after the
death of Christ or, at least, in the second half of the
1st century but later discoveries and studies showed
that a truly Christian style did not exist before the end
of the 2nd or beginning of the 3rd century. 
ARCHITECTURE

Christian Basilica
 painting
• Early Christian painting did not have a distinct existence
until about the end of the 2nd century.

St. Andrew, wall painting in the

presbytery of Santa Maria
Antiqua, Rome
painting
REASONS:
1. There can have been few, if any, monumental churches before that
time capable of taking decoration showing Christian themes.
2. Christianity did not at first make great headway among those able
to afford large painted tombs where examples of Christian
iconography might be expected to appear.
3. Early Christianity was much closer to Judaism than in later years and
may have retained the Judaic distaste for the painted image,
especially if it referred to the Godhead.
4. Christians prized classical education, which was, after all, the only
sound basis for a public career, and they could appreciate classical
works of art even if they rejected pagan subject matter.
METALWORK
Metalwork, useful and decorative objects
fashioned of various metals, including copper,
iron, silver, bronze, lead , gold, and brass. The
earliest man-made objects were of stone, wood,
bone, and earth.
Metal Works
It was only later that humans learned to extract
metals from the earth and to hammer them into
objects. Metalwork includes vessels, utensils,
ceremonial and ritualistic objects, decorative
objects, architectural ornamentation, personal
ornament, sculpture, and weapons.
Sample METALWORK