Rite Of Baptism

When Christianity came to Rome, it came as a mystery religion. So it was practised obscurely, and its central story was kept secret. (Farber, 2016). Therefore, it did not have the option of bringing with it an original style of architecture or an exotic form of art. The art which we attribute to early Christians follows Roman models, and Roman symbolism: so, for example, Jesus is shown dressed as a philosopher and pictures include virtues represented as women - like the muses. Also, the need to keep the teachings of Jesus and the rite of Baptism secret meant that the artworks we recognise as Christian draw their themes from Old Testament (Torah) stories. These are seen in works like the sarcophagi of converts to Christianity.

Because