LAMP WITH INVERTED CHRISTOGRAM

Fired clay, red slip ware, mould-made.

Numidia (Tunisia), North Africa

Late Roman Empire – Vandal Kingdom

Fifth century CE

Length: 12.8cm, width: 7.8 cm, height: 5.1 cm

Christianity flourished in North Africa from the second century CE. Tunisia, in

particular, is renowned for a series of lamps and red ware pottery depicting

scenes and stories from the Old and New Testaments. The discus of this

Christian North African lamp is decorated with a Christogram, pierced by two

filling holes and surrounded by an alternating pattern of concentric circles and

double-bordered squares enclosing an X-design. The circular form of the lamp,

as well as its decoration and fine red fabric and slip are characteristic of the

ware produced in Tunisia in the fifth century and widely exported. In this lamp

and plaque , the rho of the Christogram faces the opposite direction than

expected (retrograde). The reason for this apparent but common anomaly is

unknown.

BLMJ 6319

LAMP WITH RAM AND CHRISTOGRAM

Fired clay, red slip ware, mould-made

Numidia (Tunisia), North Africa

Late Roman Empire – Vandal Kingdom

Fifth century CE

Length: 14.1 cm, width: 8.4 cm, height: 5.2 cm

The discus depicts a ram with a Christogram inscribed in a circle on its head.

The ram, the substitute sacrifice, was a conventional symbol for the story of the

Sacrifice of Isaac. Christians associated it with the actual sacrifice of another

son, Jesus, and interpreted the aborted sacrifice of Isaac as a precursor of the

Crucifixion. The Sacrifice of Isaac provides one of the clearest examples of the

way in which early Christians used events in the Old Testament as parallels to

Jesus' Passion, creating a new interpretation of the original story in the light of

later events. In support of this comparison, Christian theologians noted that

both Isaac and Jesus were conceived in a miraculous fashion (Sarah bore Isaac

at the age of ninety after a lifetime of barrenness); that Isaac carried the wood

for his sacrifice just as Jesus carried his own cross; and that the journey to the

sacrifice site at Mt. Moriah took three days, the same length of time as between

Jesus’ death and his resurrection.

The discus is surrounded by a pattern of alternate concentric circles, filled with a

dot fringe pattern, and concentric triangles. Near the nozzle the pattern

terminates in palm branches on each side.

BLMJ 5669

PLAQUE WITH INVERTED CHRISTOGRAM AND GREEK LETTERS

ALPHA AND OMEGA

Clay

Spain(?)

Visigothic period

Sixth century CE(?)

Height: 35.5 cm, width: 23 cm, thickness: 5.5 cm

In relief on this massive tile is the Christogram, on either side of which are the

letters alpha and omega. The appearance of the letters “Α” and “ω”, the first

and last letters of the Greek alphabet, reflects the statement made by Jesus: “I

am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End” (Revelation 21:6).

The linking of the Christogram with the two letters was meant to underscore the

complete identification of the believer with Jesus. Both the Christogram and the

letters appear in reverse. The reversal of the image and the letters, as well as the

large size and weight of the plaque, indicates that it may have been used as a

stamp. The Christogram as the principal motif is evident in the areas of both

southern Spain and North Africa and is an inseparable part of the general

Christian repertoire from the fourth century onwards. The dimensions of the

plaque suggest it was frequently used, possibly to decorate church walls or

baptismal fonts.

BLMJ 6238

BOWL WITH STAUROGRAM AND GREEK LETTERS ALPHA AND

OMEGA

Fired clay, red slip ware

Numidia (Tunisia), North Africa

Late Roman Empire – Vandal Kingdom

Fourth-fifth centuries CE

Height: 4.2 cm, diameter: 17.5 cm

Stamped in this bowl is a design consisting of an inverted rho-topped cross.

This cross-shaped monogram, termed Staurogram (from stauros 'cross') is

comprised of the Greek letter tau and rho, the vertical line of the rho

superimposed on the vertical stroke of the tau. It is so-called since in the early

manuscripts of the Gospels (200-250 CE), the word stauros is written as a

ligature with this sign.

From the transverse bar of the cross hang the Greek letters “Α” (alpha) and “ω”

(omega) under its lateral arms. Note that the alpha is upside down.  The

appearance of the letters “Α” and “ω”, the first and last letters of the Greek

alphabet, reflects the statement made by Jesus: “I am the Alpha and the Omega,

the Beginning and the End” (Revelation 21:6). The linking of the Christogram

with the two letters was meant to underscore the complete identification of the

believer with Jesus.

BLMJ 6242

BREAD STAMP WITH STAUROGRAM AND GREEK LETTERS

ALPHA AND OMEGA

Limestone

Eastern Mediterranean

Byzantine period

Fourth-seventh centuries CE

Length: 5.5 cm, width: 5.5 cm, height with handle: 2.2 cm

This bread stamp depicts a Staurogram (tau-rho monogram), the Greek letters

“Α” (alpha) and “ω” (omega) under its lateral arms and two holes above them.

When pressed on the bread, the letter “P” will appear inverted although the

letters “Α”and “ω” will appear in the correct order. The whole configuration is

framed inside a square.

Each of these signs carries symbolic meaning. The appearance of the letters

“Α”and “ω”, the first and last letters of the Greek alphabet, reflects the

statement made by Jesus: “I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and

the End” (Revelation 21:6). The two holes conceivably symbolize the sun and

moon.

BLMJ 6315