Fernán Caballero

 Raimundo Diosdado Caballero

 Juan Caballero y Ocio

 Cabasa

 Jean Cabassut

 Miguel Cabello de Balboa

 Alvar Nuñez Cabeza de Vaca

 John & Sebastian Cabot

 Francisco Cabral

 Pedralvarez Cabral

 Estévan (Juan) Cabrillo

 Cadalous

 Caddo Indians

 Cades

 Antoine de Lamothe, Sieur de Cadillac

 Diocese of Cadiz

 St. Caedmon

 University of Caen

 Cæremoniale Episcoporum

 Caesarea

 Caesarea Mauretaniae

 Caesarea Palaestinae

 Caesarea Philippi

 St. Caesarius of Arles

 Caesarius of Heisterbach

 St. Caesarius of Nazianzus

 Caesarius of Prüm

 Caesar of Speyer

 Caesaropolis

 Archdiocese of Cagliari

 Diocese of Cagli e Pergola

 Charles Cahier

 Daniel William Cahill

 Diocese of Cahors

 Diocese of Caiazzo

 Armand-Benjamin Caillau

 Cain

 Cainites

 Joseph Caiphas

 Caius

 John Caius

 Popes Sts. Caius and Soter

 St. Cajetan

 Constantino Cajetan

 Tommaso de Vio Gaetani Cajetan

 Diocese of Calabozo

 Diocese of Calahorra and La Calzada

 Calama

 Fray Antonio de la Calancha

 Calas Case

 Mario di Calasio

 Pedro de Calatayud

 Military Order of Calatrava

 Archdiocese of Calcutta

 Polidoro (da Caravaggio) Caldara

 Domingos Caldas-Barbosa

 Pedro Calderon de la Barca

 Caleb

 Christian Calendar

 Jewish Calendar

 Reform of the Calendar

 Ambrogio Calepino

 Paolo Caliari

 California

 Vicariate Apostolic of Lower California

 California Missions

 Louis-Hector de Callières

 Callinicus

 Callipolis

 Pope Callistus I

 Pope Callistus II

 Pope Callistus III

 Jacques Callot

 Pierre Cally

 Dom Augustin Calmet

 Caloe

 Diocese of Caltagirone

 Diocese of Caltanisetta

 Calumny

 Dionysius Calvaert

 Congregation of Our Lady of Calvary

 Mount Calvary

 Calvert

 Diocese of Calvi and Teano

 John Calvin

 Calvinism

 Justus Baronius Calvinus

 Calynda

 Camachus

 Camaldolese

 Diego Muñoz Camargo

 Luca Cambiaso

 Archdiocese of Cambrai

 University of Cambridge

 Cambysopolis

 George Joseph Camel

 Diocese of Camerino

 Camerlengo

 St. Camillus de Lellis

 Camisards

 Luis Vaz de Camões

 Girolamo Campagna

 Domenico Campagnola

 Jeanne-Louise-Henriette Campan

 Pedro Campaña

 Tommaso Campanella

 Giuseppe Campani

 Diocese of Campeche

 Lorenzo Campeggio

 Bernardino Campi

 Galeazzo Campi

 Giulio Campi

 Campo Santo de' Tedeschi

 Jean-Pierre Camus de Pont-Carré

 Cana

 Canada

 José de la Canal

 Canary Islands

 Canatha

 Luis Cancer de Barbastro

 Candace

 Diocese of Candia

 Candidus

 Candlemas

 Candles

 Candlesticks

 Canea

 Vicariate Apostolic of Canelos and Macas

 Vincent Canes

 St. Canice

 Henricus Canisius

 Theodorich Canisius

 Alonso Cano

 Melchior Cano

 Canon

 Canon (2)

 Canoness

 Canon of the Mass

 Canon of the Holy Scriptures

 Apostolic Canons

 Collections of Ancient Canons

 Ecclesiastical Canons

 Canons and Canonesses Regular

 Canons Regular of the Immaculate Conception

 Canopus

 Canopy

 Canossa

 Antonio Canova

 Cantate Sunday

 Ancient Diocese of Canterbury

 Canticle

 Canticle of Canticles

 Cantor

 Cesare Cantù

 Canute

 St. Canute IV

 Diocese of Capaccio and Vallo

 Baptiste-Honoré-Raymond Capefigue

 Pietro Caperolo

 John Capgrave

 Diocese of Cap Haïtien

 Capharnaum

 Capitolias

 Capitularies

 Episcopal and Pontifical Capitulations

 Count Gino Capponi

 Domenico Capranica

 Giovanni Battista Caprara

 John Capreolus

 Capsa

 Captain (In the Bible)

 Captivities of the Israelites

 Archdiocese of Capua

 Capuchinesses

 Capuchin Friars Minor

 Capuciati

 Apostolic Prefecture of Caquetá

 José de Carabantes

 Caracalla

 Archdiocese of Caracas

 Vincent Caraffa

 Caraites

 Juan Caramuel y Lobkowitz

 Auguste Carayon

 James Joseph Carbery

 Carbonari

 Ignatius Carbonnelle

 Diocese of Carcassonne (Carcassum)

 Girolamo Cardan

 Juan Cardenas

 Cardica

 Cardinal

 Cardinal Protector

 Cardinal Vicar

 Cardinal Virtues

 Bartolommeo and Vincenzo Carducci

 Carem

 Mathew Carey

 Etienne de Carheil

 Diocese of Cariati (Paternum)

 Caribs

 Giacomo Carissimi

 Dionigi Carli da Piacenza

 Ancient Diocese of Carlisle

 Carlovingian Schools

 Carmel

 Mount Carmel

 Carmelite Order

 Melchior Carneiro

 Jean-Baptiste Carnoy

 Horacio Carochi

 Caroline Books (Libri Carolini)

 Caroline Islands

 Raymond Caron

 René-Edouard Caron

 Vittore Carpaccio

 Carpasia

 Diocese of Carpi

 Carracci

 Bartolomé Carranza

 Diego Carranza

 Juan Carreno de Miranda

 Rafael Carrera

 Carrhae

 Joseph Carrière

 Louis de Carrières

 Charles Carroll of Carrollton

 Daniel Carroll

 John Carroll

 Archdiocese of Cartagena

 Diocese of Cartagena

 St. Carthage

 Archdiocese of Carthage

 Carthusian Order

 Georges-Etienne Cartier

 Jacques Cartier

 Bernardino Lopez de Carvajal

 Gaspar de Carvajal

 Juan Carvajal (Carvagial)

 Luis de Carvajal

 Luisa de Carvajal

 Thomas Carve

 John Caryll

 Carystus

 Diocese of Casale Monferrato (Casalensis)

 Giovanni Battista Casali

 Vicariate Apostolic of Casanare

 Girolamo Casanata

 Bartolomé de las Casas

 Diocese of Caserta

 John Casey

 Henri Raymond Casgrain

 Cashel

 St. Casimir

 Casium

 Jean-Jacques Casot

 George Cassander

 Joseph Cassani

 Diocese of Cassano all' Ionio

 Patrick S. Casserly

 John Cassian

 William Cassidy

 Giovanni Domenico Cassini

 Cassiodorus

 François Dollier de Casson

 Diocese of Cassovia

 Castabala

 Andrea Castagno

 Diocese of Castellammare di Stabia

 Diocese of Castellaneta (Castania)

 Juan de Castellanos

 Benedetto Castelli

 Pietro Castelli

 Giovanni Battista Castello

 Baldassare Castiglione

 Count Carlo Ottavio Castiglione

 Giovanni Benedetto Castiglione

 Castile and Aragon

 Cristóbal de Castillejo

 Caspar Castner

 Castoria

 Francesco Castracane degli Antelminelli

 Alphonsus de Castro

 Fernando Castro Palao

 Guillen de Castro y Bellvis

 Casuistry

 Edward Caswall

 Roman Catacombs

 Catafalque

 Giuseppe Catalani

 Catalonia

 Archdiocese of Catania (Catanensis)

 Diocese of Catanzaro

 Catechumen

 Categorical Imperative

 Category

 Catenæ

 Cathari

 Cathedra

 Cathedral

 Cathedraticum

 Ven. Edmund Catherick

 Monastery of St. Catherine

 Catherine de' Medici

 St. Catherine de' Ricci

 St. Catherine of Alexandria

 St. Catherine of Bologna

 St. Catherine of Genoa

 St. Catherine of Siena

 St. Catherine of Sweden

 Catholic

 Catholic Benevolent Legion

 The Catholic Club of New York

 Catholic Epistle

 Catholic Knights of America

 Catholic Missionary Union

 Catholicos

 Catholic University of America

 François Catrou

 Diocese of Cattaro (Catharum)

 Augustin-Louis Cauchy

 Caughnawaga

 François-Etienne Caulet

 Caunus

 Cause

 Nicolas Caussin

 Diocese of Cava and Sarno

 Felice Cavagnis

 Bonaventura Cavalieri

 James Cavanagh

 Giovanni Antonio Cavazzi

 Celestino Cavedoni

 Andres Cavo

 William Caxton

 Diocese of Cayes

 Comte de Caylus

 Charles-Félix Cazeau

 St. Ceadda

 Diocese of Cebú

 St. Cecilia

 Cedar (1)

 Cedar (2)

 St. Cedd

 Cedes

 Brook of Cedron

 Diocese of Cefalù

 Rémi Ceillier

 Celebret

 Celenderis

 Pope St. Celestine I

 Pope Celestine II

 Pope Celestine III

 Pope Celestine IV

 Pope St. Celestine V

 Celibacy of the Clergy

 Cella

 Elizabeth Cellier

 Benvenuto Cellini

 Celsus the Platonist

 Conrad Celtes

 The Celtic Rite

 Cemetery

 Religious of the Cenacle

 Robert Cenalis

 Diocese of Ceneda

 Censer

 Censorship of Books

 Ecclesiastical Censures

 Theological Censures

 Census

 German Roman Catholic Central Verein of North America

 Centuriators of Magdeburg

 Centurion

 St. Ceolfrid

 Ceolwulf

 Francisco Cepeda

 Ceramus

 Cerasus

 Ceremonial

 Ceremony

 Cerinthus

 Certitude

 Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra

 Salazar Francisco Cervantes

 Diocese of Cervia

 Andrea Cesalpino

 Giuliano Cesarini

 Diocese of Cesena

 St. Ceslaus

 Cestra

 Ceylon

 Noel Chabanel

 Diocese of Chachapoyas

 James Chadwick

 Pierre Chaignon

 Chair of Peter

 Chalcedon

 Council of Chalcedon

 Chalcis

 Chaldean Christians

 Chalice

 Richard Challoner

 Diocese of Châlons-sur-Marne

 Cham, Chamites

 Archdiocese of Chambéry (Camberium)

 Samuel de Champlain

 Anthony Champney

 Jean-François Champollion

 Etienne Agard de Champs

 Chanaan, Chanaanites

 Diego Alvarez Chanca

 Chancel

 Bl. Pierre-Louis-Marie Chanel

 Vicariate Apostolic of Changanacherry

 Claude Chantelou

 Chantry

 Jean Chapeauville

 Chapel

 Placide-Louis Chapelle

 Chaplain

 Jean-Antoine Chaptal

 Chapter

 Chapter House

 Character

 Character (in Catholic Theology)

 Charadrus

 Jean-Baptiste Chardon

 Mathias Chardon

 Chariopolis

 Charismata

 Civil Law Concerning Charitable Bequests

 Charity and Charities

 Congregation of the Brothers of Charity

 Sisters of Charity

 Charlemagne

 St. Charles Borromeo

 Emperor Charles V

 Charles Martel

 Diocese of Charleston

 François-Xavier Charlevoix

 Diocese of Charlottetown

 François-Philippe Charpentier

 Pierre Charron

 Charterhouse

 Alain Chartier

 Diocese of Chartres

 La Grande Chartreuse

 Chartulary

 Georges Chastellain

 Pierre Chastellain

 Chastity

 Chasuble

 François-René de Chateaubriand

 Diocese of Chatham

 Geoffrey Chaucer

 Pierre-Joseph Chaumonot

 Maurice Chauncy

 Pierre-Joseph-Octave Chauveau

 Chelm and Belz

 Timoléon Cheminais de Montaigu

 Cherokee Indians

 Chersonesus

 Cherubim

 Maria Luigi Carlo Zenobio Salvatore Cherubini

 Ancient Diocese of Chester (Cestrensis)

 Jean-Louis Lefebvre de Cheverus

 Michel-Eugène Chevreul

 Diocese of Cheyenne

 Antoine-Léonard de Chézy

 Gabriello Chiabrera

 Diocese of Chiapas

 Diocese of Chiavari

 Chibchas

 Archdiocese of Chicago

 Henry Chichele

 Ancient Catholic Diocese of Chichester (Cicestrensis)

 Diocese of Chicoutimi

 Francesco Chieregati

 Archdiocese of Chieti

 Diocese of Chihuahua

 Diocese of Chilapa

 Children of Mary

 Children of Mary of the Sacred Heart

 Chile

 Domingo (San Anton y Muñon) Chimalpain

 China

 Chinooks

 Diocese of Chioggia (Chiozza)

 Chios

 Chippewa Indians

 Diocese of Chiusi-Pienza

 Chivalry

 Choctaw Indians

 Choir (1)

 Choir (2)

 Etienne-François, Duc de Choiseul

 Gilbert Choiseul du Plessis-Praslin

 Pierre Cholonec

 Alexandre-Etienne Choron

 Chrism

 Chrismal, Chrismatory

 Chrismarium

 Order of the Knights of Christ

 Diocese of Christchurch

 Christendom

 Christian

 Christian Archæology

 Christian Art

 Christian Brothers of Ireland

 Sisters of Christian Charity

 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine

 Brothers of Christian Instruction

 Christianity

 Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge

 Congregation of Christian Retreat

 Christina Alexandra

 Christine de Pisan

 Bl. Christine of Stommeln

 Christmas

 St. Christopher

 Pope Christopher

 St. Chrodegang

 St. Chromatius

 Chronicon Paschale

 Biblical Chronology

 General Chronology

 Sts. Chrysanthus and Daria

 St. Chrysogonus

 Chrysopolis

 Chur

 Church

 Churching of Women

 Church Maintenance

 Chusai

 Chytri

 Giovanni Giustino Ciampini

 Agostino Ciasca

 Ciborium

 Pierre-Martial Cibot

 Robert Ciboule

 Cibyra

 Andrea Ciccione

 Count Leopoldo Cicognara

 El Cid

 Cidyessus

 Diocese of Cienfuegos

 Carlo Cignani

 Cenni di Pepo Cimabue

 Giovanni Battista Cima da Conegliano

 Prefecture Apostolic of Cimbebasia (Upper)

 Archdiocese of Cincinnati

 Cincture

 Cinites

 Cinna

 Circesium

 Circumcision

 Feast of the Circumcision

 Cisalpine Club

 Cisamus

 Cistercian Sisters

 Cistercians

 Citation

 Abbey of Cîteaux

 Citharizum

 Diocese of Città della Pieve

 Diocese of Città di Castello

 Ciudad Real

 Diocese of Ciudad Rodrigo

 Cius

 Civil Allegiance

 Diocese of Cività Castellana, Orte, and Gallese

 Diocese of Civitavecchia and Corneto

 Abbey of Clairvaux

 Volume 5

 Clandestinity (in Canon Law)

 St. Clare of Assisi

 St. Clare of Montefalco

 Bl. Clare of Rimini

 William Clark

 Claudia

 Claudianus Mamertus

 Claudiopolis (1)

 Claudiopolis (2)

 Francisco Saverio Clavigero

 Christopher Clavius

 Claudius Clavus

 James Clayton

 Clazomenae

 Clean and Unclean

 Jan van Cleef

 Joost van Cleef

 Martin Van Cleef

 Mathieu-Nicolas Poillevillain de Clémanges

 Charles Clémencet

 Franz Jacob Clemens

 Clemens non Papa

 Pope St. Clement I

 Pope Clement II

 Pope Clement III

 Pope Clement IV

 Pope Clement V

 Pope Clement VI

 Pope Clement VII

 Pope Clement VIII

 Pope Clement IX

 Pope Clement X

 Pope Clement XI

 Pope Clement XII

 Pope Clement XIII

 Pope Clement XIV

 Cæsar Clement

 François Clément

 John Clement

 Clementines

 Bl. Clement Mary Hofbauer

 Clement of Alexandria

 St. Clement of Ireland

 Maurice Clenock

 Cleophas

 Clerestory

 Cleric

 Giovanni Clericato

 Clericis Laicos

 John Clerk

 Agnes Mary Clerke

 Clerks Regular

 Clerks Regular of Our Saviour

 Clerks Regular of the Mother of God of Lucca

 Diocese of Clermont

 Pope St. Cletus

 Diocese of Cleveland

 Josse Clichtove

 William Clifford

 Diocese of Clifton

 José Climent

 Ven. Margaret Clitherow

 Diocese of Clogher

 Cloister

 School of Clonard

 Diocese of Clonfert

 Abbey and School of Clonmacnoise

 St. Clotilda

 Clouet

 Councils of Clovesho

 Giorgio Clovio

 Clovis

 Diocese of Cloyne

 Congregation of Cluny

 John Clynn

 Bernabé Cobo

 Viatora Coccaleo

 Diocese of Cochabamba

 Martin of Cochem

 Diocese of Cochin

 Jacques-Denis Cochin

 Pierre-Suzanne-Augustin Cochin

 Johann Cochlæus

 Co-consecrators

 Cocussus

 Codex

 Codex Alexandrinus

 Codex Amiatinus

 Codex Bezae

 Codex Ephraemi Rescriptus

 Codex Sinaiticus

 Codex Vaticanus

 Thomas Codrington

 Co-education

 Nicolas Coeffeteau

 Coelchu

 Theodore Coelde

 St. Coemgen

 Coenred

 Coeur d'Alêne Indians

 Edward Coffin

 Robert Aston Coffin

 Cogitosus

 Diego López de Cogolludo

 Hermann Cohen

 Diocese of Coimbatore

 Diocese of Coimbra

 Jean-Baptiste Colbert

 Henry Cole

 Edward Coleman

 Henry James Coleridge

 John Colet

 Nicola Coleti

 St. Colette

 John Colgan

 Diocese of Colima

 Frédéric-Louis Colin

 Jean-Claude-Marie Colin

 Coliseum

 Diego Collado

 Collect

 Collectarium

 Collections

 Collectivism

 Diocese of Colle di Val d'Elsa

 College

 College (in Canon Law)

 Apostolic College

 Collège de France

 Collegiate

 St. Colman

 Walter Colman

 Joseph Ludwig Colmar

 Cologne

 University of Cologne

 Bl. Colomba of Rieti

 Republic of Colombia

 Archdiocese of Colombo

 Matteo Realdo Colombo

 Colonia (1)

 Colonna

 Egidio Colonna

 Giovanni Paolo Colonna

 Vittoria Colonna

 Colonnade

 Colophon

 Colorado

 Colossæ

 Epistle to the Colossians

 Liturgical Colours

 St. Columba of Terryglass

 St. Columba

 St. Columba, Abbot of Iona

 St. Columbanus

 Columbia University

 Christopher Columbus

 Diocese of Columbus

 Column

 Diocese of Comacchio

 Comana

 Diocese of Comayagua

 François Combefis

 Daniel Comboni

 St. Comgall

 Commandments of God

 Commandments of the Church

 Commemoration (in Liturgy)

 Commendatory Abbot

 Giovanni Francesco Commendone

 Commentaries on the Bible

 Philippe de Commines

 Commissariat of the Holy Land

 Commissary Apostolic

 Ecclesiastical Commissions

 Commodianus

 Commodus

 Brethren of the Common Life

 Philosophy of Common Sense

 Martyrs of the Paris Commune

 Communicatio Idiomatum

 Communion-Antiphon

 Communion-Bench

 Communion of Children

 The Communion of Saints

 Communion of the Sick

 Communion under Both Kinds

 Communism

 Diocese of Como

 Compagnie du Saint-Sacrement

 Compensation

 Occult Compensation

 Privilege of Competency

 Complin

 Compostela

 Compromise (in Canon Law)

 St. Conal

 St. Conan

 Conaty, Thomas James

 Concelebration

 Diocese of Concepción

 Conceptionists

 Industrial Conciliation

 Daniello Concina

 Conclave

 Concordances of the Bible

 Concordat

 The French Concordat of 1801

 Diocese of Concordia (Concordia Veneta)

 Diocese of Concordia (Corcondiensis in America)

 Concubinage

 Concupiscence

 Concursus

 Charles-Marie de la Condamine

 Etienne Bonnot de Condillac

 Condition

 Thomas Conecte

 Ecclesiastical Conferences

 Confession

 Confessor

 Confirmation

 Confiteor

 Confraternity (Sodality)

 Confucianism

 Congo Independent State and Congo Missions

 Congregatio de Auxiliis

 Congregationalism

 Congregational Singing

 Catholic Congresses

 Congrua

 Congruism

 Conimbricenses

 Giles de Coninck

 Connecticut

 John Connolly

 Pope Conon

 Conradin of Bornada

 Bl. Conrad of Ascoli

 Conrad of Hochstadt

 Conrad of Leonberg

 Conrad of Marburg

 Bl. Conrad of Offida

 St. Conrad of Piacenza

 Conrad of Saxony

 Conrad of Urach

 Conrad of Utrecht

 Florence Conry

 Ercole Consalvi

 Consanguinity (in Canon Law)

 Conscience

 Hendrik Conscience

 Consciousness

 Consecration

 Consent (in Canon Law)

 Consentius

 Conservator

 Papal Consistory

 Cuthbert Constable

 John Constable

 Constance

 Council of Constance

 Constantia

 Pope Constantine

 Diocese of Constantine (Cirta)

 Constantine Africanus

 Constantine the Great

 Constantinople

 Councils of Constantinople

 Rite of Constantinople

 Ecclesiastical Constitutions

 Papal Constitutions

 Consubstantiation

 Diocesan Consultors

 Philippe du Contant de la Molette

 Gasparo Contarini

 Giovanni Contarini

 Contemplation

 Contemplative Life

 Vincent Contenson

 Continence

 Contingent

 Contract

 The Social Contract

 Contrition

 Contumacy (in Canon Law)

 Adam Contzen

 Convent

 Convent Schools (Great Britain)

 Order of Friars Minor Conventuals

 Diocese of Conversano

 Conversi

 Conversion

 Convocation of the English Clergy

 Henry Conwell

 Archdiocese of Conza

 Vicariate Apostolic of Cooktown

 William Henry Coombes

 Copacavana

 Cope

 University of Copenhagen

 Nicolaus Copernicus

 François Edouard Joachim Coppée

 Coptos

 Claude-Godefroi Coquart

 Coracesium

 Ambrose Corbie

 Monastery of Corbie

 St. Corbinian

 James Andrew Corcoran

 Michael Corcoran

 Confraternities of the Cord

 Giulio Cesare Cordara

 Charles Cordell

 Balthasar Cordier

 Diocese of Cordova (Cordubensis)

 Diocese of Cordova (Cordubensis in America)

 Juan de Cordova

 Core, Dathan, and Abiron

 Vicariate Apostolic of Corea

 Archdiocese of Corfu

 Diocese of Coria

 Corinth

 Epistles to the Corinthians

 Gaspard-Gustave de Coriolis

 Diocese of Cork

 School of Cork

 Maurus Corker

 Cormac MacCuilenan

 Elena Lucrezia Piscopia Cornaro

 Jean-Baptiste Corneille

 Michel Corneille (the Younger)

 Michel Corneille (the Elder)

 Pierre Corneille

 Jacob Cornelisz

 Cornelius

 Pope Cornelius

 Peter Cornelius

 Cornelius Cornelii a Lapide

 Karl Josef Rudolph Cornely

 Nicolas Cornet

 Cornice

 Abbey of Cornillon

 Giovanni Maria Cornoldi

 Francisco Vasquez de Coronado

 Coronation

 Gregorio Nuñez Coronel

 Juan Coronel

 Corporal

 Corporation

 Corporation Act of 1661

 Feast of Corpus Christi

 Corpus Juris Canonici

 Fraternal Correction

 Correctories

 Michael Augustine Corrigan

 Sir Dominic Corrigan

 Corsica

 Hernando Cortés

 Giovanni Andrea Cortese

 Diocese of Cortona

 Abbey of Corvey

 Corycus

 Corydallus

 Juan de la Cosa

 Archdiocese of Cosenza

 Henry Cosgrove

 Edmund Cosin

 Cosmas

 Sts. Cosmas and Damian

 Cosmas Indicopleustes

 Cosmas of Prague

 Cosmati Mosaic

 Cosmogony

 Cosmology

 Francesco Cossa

 Lorenzo Costa

 Giovanni Domenico Costadoni

 Republic of Costa Rica

 Francis Coster

 Clerical Costume

 Maria Cosway

 Jean-Baptiste Cotelier

 Cotenna

 Cotiæum

 Pierre Coton

 Diocese of Cotrone

 Robert de Coucy

 Frederic René Coudert

 General Councils

 Evangelical Counsels

 Counterpoint

 The Counter-Reformation

 Court (in Scripture)

 William Courtenay

 Ecclesiastical Courts

 Jean Cousin

 Charles-Edmond-Henride Coussemaker

 Pierre Coustant

 Nicolas Coustou

 Diocese of Coutances

 Louis-Charles Couturier

 Diego Covarruvias

 Covenanters

 Covetousness

 Diocese of Covington

 Cowl

 Michiel Coxcie

 Michiel Coxcie

 Charles-Antoine Coysevox

 Lorenzo Cozza

 Giuseppe Cozza-Luzi

 Cracow

 Pearl Mary Teresa Craigie

 Richard Crashaw

 Jean Crasset

 Mrs. Augustus Craven

 Gaspar de Crayer

 Richard Creagh

 Creation

 Creationism

 Credence

 Lorenzo di Credi

 Cree

 Creed

 Liturgical Use of Creeds

 Creeks

 Creighton University

 Henri-Joseph Crelier

 Diocese of Crema

 Cremation

 Diocese of Cremona

 François de Crépieul

 Crescens

 Crescentius

 Giovanni Mario Crescimbeni

 Cresconius

 Hugh Paulinus Serenus Cressy

 Joseph Creswell

 Joseph Crétin

 Jacques Crétineau-Joly

 Hector St. John de Crèvecoeur

 Crib

 Impediment of Crime

 Diocese of Crisium

 St. Crispina

 Sts. Crispin and Crispinian

 Bl. Crispin of Viterbo

 Biblical Criticism

 Historical Criticism

 Carlo Crivelli

 Croagh Patrick

 Croatia

 Giovanni Croce

 Croia

 Jean Croiset

 Thomas William Croke

 William Crolly

 Cronan

 Crosier

 The Crosiers

 Cross and Crucifix

 Cross-Bearer

 Brothers of the Cross of Jesus

 Johann Crotus

 Franciscan Crown

 Crown of Thorns

 Abbey of Croyland

 Cruelty to Animals

 Cruet

 Bull of the Crusade

 Crusades

 Crutched Friars

 Ramón de la Cruz

 Crypt

 Diocese of Csanád

 Cuba

 Diocese of Cuenca (Conca in Indiis)

 Diocese of Cuenca (Conca)

 Diocese of Cuernavaca

 Juan de la Cueva

 Culdees

 Paul Cullen

 Diocese of Culm

 Jeremiah Williams Cummings

 Martyrs of Cuncolim

 Bl. Cunegundes

 Diocese of Cuneo

 André-Jean Cuoq

 Cupola

 Vicariate Apostolic of Curaçao

 Curate

 Curator

 Cure of Souls

 Diocese of Curityba do Parana

 Curium

 James Curley

 Joseph Curr

 John Curry

 Cursing

 Cursores Apostolici

 Cursor Mundi

 Curubis

 Cusæ

 Cush

 Johannes Cuspinian

 Custom (in Canon Law)

 Custos

 St. Cuthbert

 Cuthbert

 Cuthbert, Archbishop of Canterbury

 Diocese of Cuyabá

 Diocese of Cuzco

 Cybistra

 Cyclades

 Cydonia

 Cyme

 Cynewulf

 Cynic School of Philosophy

 St. Cyprian

 Sts. Cyprian and Justina

 St. Cyprian of Carthage

 Cyprus

 Cyrenaic School of Philosophy

 Cyrene

 Sts. Cyril and Methodius

 St. Cyril of Alexandria

 St. Cyril of Constantinople

 St. Cyril of Jerusalem

 Cyrrhus

 Sts. Cyrus and John

 Cyrus of Alexandria

 Cyzicus

 Czech Literature

Christian Archæology


Christian archaeology is that branch of the science of archaeology the object of which is the study of ancient Christian monuments. The modern historian who endeavours to reconstruct the life of the primitive Christians has two sources of information to draw upon, namely: literary and monumental sources. By literary sources is commonly understood the existing remains of early Christian literature; monumental sources consist of the various classes of objects of a material character surviving from antiquity, which were produced by Christians or under Christian influence, sepulchral inscriptions, paintings, sculptures churches, and the products of the minor arts. The principal aim of Christian archaeology, as indicated, is to ascertain all that is possible relative to the manners and customs of the early Christians from the monuments of Christian antiquity. Any attempt to determine the date when the period loosely designated "Christian Antiquity" gave place to the medieval period must of necessity be more or less arbitrary. As a consequence of this difficulty, differences of opinion exist among archaeologists as to the chronological limits to be assigned to Christian archaeology. However, such authorities as De Rossi and Le Blant regard the beginning of the seventh century, or the death of Gregory the Great (604), as a date which marks sufficiently well the end of the ancient, and the beginning of the medieval period. In Gaul and Germany Christian monuments preserved much of their ancient character till a century later.


I. SUMMARY OF ITS HISTORY

The honour of inaugurating the scientific study of Christian antiquity belongs to an Augustinian monk, Onofrio Panvinio, who in 1554 and 1568 published two important works on the basilicas of Rome (De praecipuis urbis Romae sanctioribus basilicis) and on the cemeteries and sepulchral rites of the early Christians ("De ritu sepeliendi mortuos apud veteres Christianos et de eorum coemeteriis"). Ten years after the publication of the latter work, some labourers accidently discovered (31 May, 1578), on the Via Salaria an ancient subterranean cemetery containing inscriptions and frescos of an unmistakably Christian character. Among the first to visit the newly-discovered cemetery was the ecclesiastical historian Baronius, who, though he recognized the importance of the find, yet took no part in contemporary explorations. He had, however, already commenced his great historical work, "Annales Ecclesiastici", the composition of which absorbed his whole attention. For fifteen years after the discovery on the Via Salaria the only persons to attempt any explorations in the catacombs were a Spanish Dominican, Alfonso Ciacconio and two Flemish laymen, Philip de Winghe and Jean l'Heureux. Ciacconio accomplished nothing of importance. The investigations of the two Flemish explorers gave promise of better results, but their writings remained unpublished, and consequently had no influence on their contemporaries.

The first to begin the systematic exploration of the ancient Roman cemeteries or catacombs, was the "Father of Christian Archaeology", Antonio Bosio. Born in Malta in 1575, Bosio was placed at an early age under the care of an uncle who resided at Rome, as procurator of the Knights of Malta. At the age of eighteen he was attracted to the study of the early Christian sepulchral monuments of Rome, and from that date till his death, in 1629, a period of thirty-six years, he devoted his life to the exploration of the catacombs. Three years after his death (1632), the results of his investigations and studies were made known to the world in an Italian work entitled "Roma Sotterranea", edited by the Oratorian Severano, and published at the expense of the Order of Malta. The great merit of this work was at once recognized, and led to the publication by Aringhi, in 1651, of a Latin translation for the benefit of the savants of Europe. The scientific character of Bosio's explorations has recently been confirmed by an interesting discovery. De Rossi, in spite of his admiration for Bosio maintained that the cemetery of Sts. Mark and Marcellianus, in which Pope Damasus was interred, lay to the right of the Via Ardeatina and not to the left as Bosio believed. In 1902 both the crypts of Pope Damasus and of Sts. Mark and Marcellianus were discovered by Wilpert, and in the locality indicated by Bosio. Important as was the work of Bosio, it was, however, in one department defective. The copies of catacomb paintings made for his "Roma Sotterranea" have been very often found by Wilpert to be quite inaccurate. This fault must be attributed to Bosio's copyists.

For more than two centuries after the death of Bosio, little advance was made in the exploration of the Roman catacombs, the great treasure-house of the monuments of primitive Christianity. Protestant writers either altogether ignored the discoveries of Bosio or refuted them to their own satisfaction, without ever having seen the monuments. Even Bingham, whose work on Christian Antiquities was published nearly a century after the first edition of Bosio's work appeared, made no use of the results of his investigations. Yet Catholic authors scarcely showed more appreciation of the monuments than their Protestant contemporaries. Unlike De Rossi in our own age, Bosio founded no school of trained archaeologists to carry on the work he so happily inaugurated; the consequence of which was that all systematic exploration ceased at his death. Fabretti, in his collection of inscriptions published in 1699, devoted only one chapter (viii) to Christian inscriptions. Twenty-one years later, Boldetti, who held the office of custodian of the catacombs, published an apologetic work of little value on the "Cemeteries of the holy Martyrs and ancient Christians of Rome". A work of Buonarotti on cemeterial glasses (Florence, 1716) is of greater merit. But the eighteenth century will be longer remembered for the destruction of Christian monuments than for the labours of its archaeologists. Under the direction of Boldetti numerous inscriptions were removed from the places where they were originally erected, and scattered through various Roman churches, without any clear indication of the localities from which they were taken. These inscriptions were afterwards collected by Benedict XIV (1740-58) in the Christian Museum of the Vatican, of which he was founder. Many invaluable frescoes, also, were injured or destroyed during the eighteenth century. It would be natural to expect that the establishment of a department in connection with the Vatican Library for the collection of Christian inscriptions and other relics of the early Church would arouse the curiosity of Roman antiquarians. Such is not the fact, however. For several years after the death of Benedict XIV no one took any interest in the catacombs in view of later occurrences it was, perhaps, as well that this was the case. About 1780, Seroux d'Agincourt (q.v.) visited several of the ancient cemeteries, and copied for publication in his "Histoire de Part par les monuments" (Paris, 1823), a number of catacomb frescoes. But M. d'Agincourt was not always satisfied with copies. Following the example of other explorers in the same field, he was too often desirous of obtaining the original paintings, and their inaugurated a more systematic destruction of monuments than any of his predecessors.

With the first half of the nineteenth century began a new epoch in archaeological studies. The work of M. Raoul Rochette "Discours sur l'origine etc. des types qui constituent l'art du Christianisme" (Paris, 1834), and his "Tableau des Catacombes de Rome" (Paris, 1837) had the merit of arousing interest in the Christian monuments of Rome, although his conclusions were not at all convincing. In Italy, Sarti, Settele, Pasquini, De Minicis, Valentini, Manara, Cordero, and others produced works of minor importance on the subterranean-cemeterial monuments, the Christian sarcophagi, and the early basilicas of their country. The honour of inaugurating really important work, however, belongs to the Jesuit Father Marchi. Marchi was the first to demonstrate the essential difference between the arenaria, or sand-pits in the vicinity of Rome, and the galleries of the catacombs. In 1841 he published the first volume of what he intended to be an exhaustive work on early Christian art, for various reasons he was unable to complete the undertaking. But Marchi had associated with him, from the time he began to devote particular attention to the Christian monuments of Rome (1841), a young man, not yet twenty years of age, who was destined to take up the work of Bosio and elevate Christian archaeology to the dignity of a science. This was Giovanni Battista De Rossi (1822-94). The important work undertaken by De Rossi (q.v.) was and that results of the greatest interest and importance for the history of the early Church might be obtained by systematic investigations carried out on scientific principles. No one was better qualified than himself to execute his plans, a fact recognized by Pope Pius IX, who commissioned him to begin the work destined to be so fruitful in results.

The work of De Rossi which best reveals his immense learning and the scientific manner in which his investigations were carried out is his "Roma Sotterranea" (Rome, 1864-77, 3 vols., fol.). The time that has elapsed since the publication of the last volume of this truly magnum opus has confirmed in the main the theories of its author on the civil and religious conditions of the primitive Christians, and on the symbolic character of early Christian art. In 1863 he began the publication of his "Bullettino d'archeologia cristiana", a periodical almost as indispensable to the student of Christian archaeology as the "Roma Sotterranea". De Rossi left at his death a school of archaeologists, trained in his scientific methods, and capable of continuing his work. The three earliest of his disciples, Armellini, Stevenson, and Marucchi, have published numerous works giving the results of their own investigations, or popularizing the general results of Christian archaeological discoveries, besides continuing the publication of the Bullettino under the title "Nuovo Bullettino d'archeologia cristiana". A publicist who accomplished considerable work of permanent value in the domain of Christian archaeology was the Jesuit Garrucci. His most important publication was a "History of Christian Art" in six volumes, which contains five hundred tables of illustrations. Many of these, however, have been found inaccurate and must be used with caution. His text also has been in a great measure superseded by that of recent writers. The best results achieved since the death of De Rossi are attributable to a young German priest whose love for archaeological studies drew him to Rome nearly two decades ago: Mgr. Joseph Wilpert. Wilpert has devoted himself in a special manner to the study of early Christian painting, a department of archaeology to which De Rossi was unable to give the attention the subject deserved. In 1889 Wilpert published his "Principienfragen der christlichen Archaologie", a brochure defending the principles of interpretation of the Roman school of archeologists against the attacks of German non-Catholic authors. In 1892 appeared his study on "Die Gottgeweihten Jungfrauen", a valuable contribution on the origins of the religious life. In 1895 he published his "Fractio Panis," wherein he describes the cycle of sacred representations in the crypt of St. Priscilla, known as the "Capella Greca", and shows their relation to the principal scene depicted in that chapel, the eucharistic, or sacred-banquet, scene of the apse which he appropriately named "fractio panis", the Breaking of Bread. The signification of Orantes (praying) figures so frequently depicted on early Christian tombs was first satisfactorily explained by this writer in his "Cyclus christologischer Gemalde" (1891). His greatest work is his "Malereign der Katakomben Roms" (Freiburg, 1903). It consists of two folio volumes, one of plates reproducing more than six hundred catacomb frescoes, half of them in colours; the other of text, in which the author, after laying down his principles of interpretation, classifies and describes the various cycles of the cemeterial paintings and interprets their symbolical meaning. Another German priest resident in Rome, Mgr. de Waal, the founder and editor of the "Romische Quartalschrift", has written extensively on archaeological subjects; one of his best known works is a description, with illustrations, of the sarcophagus of Junius Bassus (Rodney 1900).

The impetus given to the study of early Christian monuments by the discoveries and publications of De Rossi was immediately felt in every country of Europe. Two English priests, Northcote and Brownlow, were among the first to appreciate the importance of his work, which they popularized in their excellent "Roma Sotterranea" (London, 1869; second edition, 1878). Dr. Northcote also published a useful work on early Christian inscriptions under the title "Epitaphs of the Catacombs" (London, 1878). The former of these works was translated into French by Allard; Kraus's "Roma Sotterranea" was partly a translation of Northcote and Brownlow, and partly an original work. Smith and Cheetham's "Dictionary of Christian Antiquities" (London 1875-80) is an evidence of the influence on English Protestants of the Roman explorations, and the recently published manual of Lowrie, "Monuments of the Early Church" (New York, 1901), bears witness to the intelligent interest of American Protestants in the most recent results of Christian archaeological studies. Among the first in France to be influenced by the archaeological revival of De Rossi was the Abbé Martigny, who in 1865 published his, for that time, remarkable "Dictionnaire des antiquités chrétiennes" (third edition. Paris, 1889). Perret's "Catacombes de Rome" (Paris, 1851-55) is a pretentious work of little value; his illustrations are inaccurate, and his text unreliable Deshassayns de Richemont's "Catacombes de Rome" appeared in 1870, and in the following year Allard's translation of Northcote and Brownlow. These works did good service as popular manuals, but original investigations of great importance were carried on by another French archaeologist, Edmond Le Blant. The first volume of Le Blant's "Inscriptions chrétiennes de la Gaule" appeared in 1856, the second in 1865, the third in 1892. These were followed by two volumes on the Christian sarcophagi of Arles and of France (Paris, 1878-86), and various studies on Christian epigraphy. At the present time (1906) a highly useful and excellent work in course of publication, is Cabrol and Leclercq's "Dictionnaire d'archéologie et de liturgie" (since 1903). The discoveries of Count de Vogüé in Central Syria ["La Syrie Centrale" (Paris, 1865)], and in the Holy Land ["Les eglises de la Terre Sainte" (Paris, 1860)] were of great importance for the history of early Christian architecture. The writings of Pere Delattre and of Stephen Gsell are indispensable for the study of the Christian monuments of North Africa. In Germany Professor Franz Xaver Kraus did more, probably, than any other writer to popularize the results of Christian archaeological studies. Besides his "Roma Sotterranea "Kraus edited the excellent "Real-Encyklopadie der christlichen Alterthumer" (Freiburg 1882-86, 2 vols.), and published (Freiburg, 1896-97), an (unfinished) history of Christian art in three volume), of which only the first concerns Christian archaeology. It is the most complete general work on this subject that has yet appeared.Kraus also published in two volumes (Freiburg, 1890-94), a collection of early Christian inscriptions from the Rhineland, besides a number of monographs of an archaeological character. Among German Protestant archaeologists may be mentioned Victor Schultze, whose studies on the catacombs of Naples and Syracuse, and "Archaologie der altchristlichen Kunst" (Munich, 1895) are of importance. Of contemporary German writers on the monuments of Christian antiquity space will not permit more than the mention of a few of the principal: Muller, Ficker, Krumbacher, Strzygowski, Kirsch, Kaufmann, and Baumstark.


II. LITERARY SOURCES

The knowledge of early Christian society derived from the study of the oldest existing Christian monuments has thrown light on many obscurities in the Church's early history, as it was known from the literature that has come down to us from the first age of Christianity. It is equally true that the study of Christian monuments would be impossible apart from the study of the various literary sources of Christian antiquity. Christian literature and Christian monuments supplement one another. First among the literary sources indispensable for the study of the monuments is the Christian art from the first century was inspired by the Sacred Scriptures. After this primary source, the Acts of the Martyrs, Christian liturgies, certain liturgical prayers, particularly those relative to death, Church calendars, the so-called Pontifical Books, especially the famous Roman "Liber Pontificalis" (q.v.) ancient missals and sacramentaries, and in general all Christian literature, till well on in medieval times, have proved invaluable aids in the interpretation of the momuments. Especially useful were the medieval pilgrims' itineraries, the Baedekers of their time, because of the indications they contain relative to the topography of the ancient subterranean cemeteries of Christian Rome.


III. CHARACTER OF THE EARLIEST MONUMENTS. PRINCIPAL RESULTS OF CHRISTIAN ARCHAEOLOGICAL INVESTIGATIONS.

The principal monuments of the earliest Christian ages have been found in the sub-terranean cemeteries of Rome. The oldest portions of several of these cemeteries date from the first century of the Christian Era, so that, within their range, whatever information they supply bears the stamp of the Apostolic Age. The fact that these monuments are of a sepulchral character must always be borne in mind. No one would expect to find in the inscriptions and sculptures of a modern Catholic cemetery a complete exposition of Catholic theology; neither should such an exposition of dogma be looked for in the inscriptions and frescoes of the catacombs. Any information we might reasonably expect, therefore, from sepulchral monuments should have some relation to the ideas concerning death that were uppermost in the minds of those who erected them. Within this range and to a certain extent beyond it, the monuments are perfectly clear. The inscriptions and paintings of the catacombs, as well as the sculptured sarcophagi of the fourth and subsequent centuries, exhibit in the most unequivocal manner the beliefs of their authors in the momentous question of existence beyond the grave.


IV. INSCRIPTIONS

The earliest Christian inscriptions are simple in the extreme: they barely mention the name of the deceased, with a brief prayer for his soul -- "Regina, mayest thou live in the Lord Jesus", "Peace be with you", "In peace", "In God". By the third century these formula had developed so far as to express belief in the Trinity and the communion of saints; the Sacrament of baptism is implicitly alluded to in the mention of neophytes, tend in such inscriptions as "Fidem accepit", "post susceptionem suam" (he received the Faith, after his reception); the Eucharist in the two famous epitaphs of Abercius of Hieropolis (q.v.) and Pectorius of Autun. The three highest orders of the hierarchy, and several of the minor orders, are also mentioned, as well as consecrated virgins and widows; frequent reference is, of course, made to the lay members of the community. Still more interesting, perhaps, are the deductions which may legitimately be drawn from certain peculiarities of these very early Christian memorials. The equality of all before God, for example, is taught by the eloquent silence of the epitaphs as to the worldly rank or titles of the deceased. Allusions to slaves and freedmen, so common in contemporary pagan inscriptions, are found in only a few instances on Christian epitaphs, and then in the kindliest manner. Even more remarkable, in an age when persecution was even imminent, is the silence of Christian inscriptions on that subject. No thought was given to the persecutors, the attention of the followers of Christ was wholly absorbed by the world beyond the tomb. And with regard to this better world they entertained a perfect confidence; the very name of cemetery given by them to their last resting-place (koimeterion, dormitorium), "a sleeping-place") reveals their confidence in the promises of the Saviour. The metrical inscriptions erected in the latter part of the fourth century by Pope Damasus (366-384) manifest the great veneration in which the martyrs were then held, and at the same time supply valuable data as to their history.


V. PAINTINGS

Following the custom then in vogue of decorating the tombs of deceased friends, the Christians of Rome, from the first century, began to adorn with frescoes the burial chambers of the catacombs. The catacombs were, therefore, "the cradle of Christian art". Although some of the early Christian writers looked upon artistic productions with suspicion, the Roman Church never seems to have had any misgivings in this regard. Art in itself was indifferent; why not adopt and purify it? This was precisely what was done. Even in the oldest paintings of the catacombs, which date from the end of the first century, the process of purification has already begun. The pictorial ornamentation of the Acilian and Flavian family tombs, which belongs to this period, though chiefly decorative in characters like that of contemporary pagan tombs is yet wholly free from idolatrous or indelicate motifs. The foundations of a specifically Christian art were also laid in the first century, in a few frescoes representing Daniel in the lions' den, Noe in the ark, and the Good Shepherd. All of these subjects were symbols, and symbolism (q.v.) was the special characteristic of Christian art down to the fourth century. The source of inspiration of the symbolic paintings of the catacombs was the Bible. In selecting their subjects from the Sacred Writings the artists, or those who directed their operations, did not proceed at random, but followed certain definite regulations. These regulations were suggested by the fact that the frescoes were to form a sepulchral ornamentation. The dominant idea, therefore, in making a selection of subjects was that the latter, according to the views prevailing among Christians should be adaptable, as symbols, to the condition after death of those on whose tombs they were to be erected. The funeral liturgies, consequently, prayers for the dying, and invocations of like tenor served as guides in the choice of symbols. Thus for example, in the Litany for a Soul Departing, still in use, we have the invocation "Deliver, O Lord, the soul of Thy servant, as Thou didst deliver Daniel from the den of the lions". The figure of Daniel standing between the two lions, so frequently depicted in the catacombs, is an early pictured form of this prayer. The cycles of sacred representations of the catacombs were, therefore, selected because of their appropriateness to the condition of the Christian soul after death. From the point of view of doctrine and discipline, many of them are of the greatest importance. For instance, with regard to the sacraments, the cycle of frescoes relative to baptism, some of which date from the early second century, show clearly that baptism was administered by effusion; while several of the cycle referring to the Eucharist indicate quite plainly a belief in the sacrificial character of the Mass. In numerous frescoes belief in the divinity of Christ is manifested, and the prominent place occupied by the Blessed Virgin in the thoughts of the Christians of the first three centuries is apparent in the many representations of Mary (the most ancient belongs to the first half of the second century), with the Infant Saviour in her arms. The gradual development of the idea of Mary's important place in the scheme of redemption is ascertained by comparison of the earlier with the later frescoes of the Mother and Child; a painting of the latter half of the third century in the catacomb of St. Priscilla represents her in the character of model for a virgin taking the veil; while in a fresco of the middle of the fourth century in the Coemeterium majus, she is seen in the attitude of prayer, interceding, according to the interpretation of Wilpert, with her Divine Son, for the surviving friends of the deceased persons on whose tomb this representation appears. The dogma of the communion of saints is as clearly expressed in the paintings, as in the inscriptions of the catacombs. The various Orantes, or praying figures, are symbols of the deceased in heaven interceding with God for friends still members of the Church Militant. Other frescoes represent the particular judgment, with saints in the attitude of advocates pleading with the Judge for their admission to heaven. St. Peter and St. Paul were also favourite subjects with the Christian artists of Rome, especially in the fourth century. The earliest fresco of St. Peter, in the cemetery Ad Duas Lauros, represents the Prince of the Apostles reading from an open roll, in the character of "Legislator of the New Covenant". The high place in which the ecclesiastical authorities were held is indicated by the special garb in which they are represented, the priests administering baptism are clad in tunic and pallium, two articles of apparel which, with sandals, constituted the dress reserved to personages of a sacred character.


VI. SCULPTURE

During the first age of the Church a specifically Christian sculpture was almost unknown. Many reasons have been given to account for this circumstance, the chief of which, besides that of cost, is the practical difficulty encountered in producing works distinctively Christian without the knowledge of a hostile public and Government. Only a few statues and sarcophagi with representations inspired by the Scriptures survive from the first three centuries. Christian sculpture, consequently, began its real development in the fourth century, in the age of peace inaugurated by Constantine. The principal sculptured monuments of this period consist of the many sarcophagi, mostly found in Rome, Ravenna, and in various parts of France, in which Christians of the Constantinian and post-Constantinian epochs were interred. Being sepulchral monuments, the symbolic subjects of the catacomb frescoes were equally appropriate on Christian sarcophagi. But Christian sculptors quickly felt the influence of the new development of Christian art first seen in the basilicas erected under Constantine. The triumphant symbols of the basilcas, and the historical scenes depicted on their walls, are also found on Christian sarcophagi, side by side with some of the earliest and most venerable symbols of the catacombs. The transition from symbolic to historic art is, consequently, nowhere better represented than in the carved sarcophagi of the fourth and following centuries.


VII. BASILICAS

According to the Acts of the Apostles the first Christians were accustomed to meet in private houses for the celebration of the liturgy: "Breaking bread from house to house" (Acts, ii, 46). The first separate places of worship of the Christians were, therefore, the homes of those among them which were sufficiently large to accommodate a considerable number of people. Down to the reign of Constantine the custom thus established in the Church of Jerusalem, of assembling for the celebration of the liturgy in private residences, seems to have been generally followed. It is very probable, however, that there were churches of the basilica type in Asia Minor before Constantine. The church at Nicomedia, destroyed in the persecution of Diocletian, was erected in the third century. According to an ancient tradition, the house of Senator Pudens at Rome, as well as that of Saint Cecilia, was used for such a purpose. The third-century romance known as the "Clementine Recognitions" has two references of interest in this regard: the author tells of a certain Maro who invited St. Peter to preach in a hall of his mansion, capable of holding five hundred persons (Recog., iv, 6), and, in another place, he speaks of a man named Theophilus who had a similar hall of his house consecrated as a church (ibid., x, 71). The Christian churches of the fourth century, known as basilicas (q.v.), derived their name, and some of their principal features, either from the public basilicas, like those of the Roman forum, or from the private basilicas of great mansions, such as the halls of Maro and Theophilus. These churches consisted of a large oblong hall, divided by columns into a central nave and two or four aisles. The apse at the extremity of the hall opposite the entrance derives, according to Kraus and others, from such early structures as the three-apsed cemeterial churches, two of which may still be seen in the cemetery of St. Callistus. The apse, however, is a feature of the two civil basilicas of Trajan and Maxentius. The atrium, or court-yard before the entrance is a feature of the Christian basilica not seen in the civil basilicas, and is evidently a reminiscence of the domus ecclesiae of the first the three centuries.

The baptisteries erected adjacent to basilicas, were, as a rule, circular or polygonal in form. Circular edifices were also erected as mausoleums; two of the best examples are the church of St. Costanza in Rome and the mausoleum of King Theodoric at Ravenna. Following the precedent of the church of the Holy Sepulchre at Jerusalem, circular or octagonal churches also were sometimes erected; the church of St. Vitale at Ravenna is the best known Western structure of this type. The inferior decoration of the earliest Christian basilicas exhibits a new development in Christian art. The symbols depicted in the catacombs were perfectly appropriate for the purpose for which they were intended, but a different style of adornment was demanded in edifices whose object was not so immediately associated with death. Moreover, the Church of Christ had at length triumphed over paganism, and this triumph suggested to the Christian artists of the Constantinian Age the idea of commemorating the victory in the new basilicas. In this way a new symbolism, representing Christ triumphant on His thrones came into existence. Historical scenes from the life of Christ or from the Old Testament were frequently represented in the frescoes and mosaics of basilicas, and these served not only as all appropriate adornment, but also as an excellent illustration of the Sacred Scriptures.


VIII. THE MINOR ARTS

Under this heading are usually classified such remains of early Christian times as textile fabrics, liturgical clothing and implements, objects of devotion, domestic articles, coins and medals, and illustrations in miniature. The last named are of especial importance for the history of art in the Middle Ages. (See CATACOMBS, and DE ROSSI, GIOVANNI BATTISTA.)

MAURICE M. HASSETT