We also meet with figures of Adam and Eve; the murder of Abel; Noah and the ark, with the dove bringing him the olive-branch; Abraham preparing to offer up Isaac; Moses touching the rock Horeb with his rod; or receiving the tables of the law; or standing with seven vessels full of manna at his feet; or taking off his shoes to approach the burning bush: the two spies carrying the bunch of grapes between them: Jonas being swallowed or vomited out by the whale, or sitting under his gourd; Daniel in the den of lions; the three children in the fiery furnace; Tobias with the fish; Job; Elias carried up into heaven; the adoration of the three kings; Christ's entry into Jerusalem; the paralytic carrying his bed; the raising of Lazarus; the ship, emblematical of the Church, frequently represented with S. Peter sitting at the helm, and S. Paul standing at the prow, as if preaching and exhorting the people to come into the ship, or sometimes drawing in a net. The anchor, emblematical of a Christian's hope, constancy and fortitude, or, as others think, of salvation, which was also recommended by S. Clement to be worn on their rings by the faithful. The I cock, emblematical of Christian vigilance. Two cocks fighting; striving for Christ, and the palm of glory. The peacock, with its train displayed, supposed to symbolize the resurrection, and immortality. Its appropriation as the emblem of worldly pride is com- dern. The phoenix, rising from its ashes, em 66 blematical of the immortality of the soul, and the resurrection. The lion, fortitude, strength, and vigilance, in allusion to Christ, called in Scripture "the lion of the tribe of Judah." It is also an historical sign, as in representations of S. Ignatius, Daniel the prophet, &c. Also the symbol of solitude, (S. Jerome ;) sometimes it has very contradictory significations, not only alluding to Christ, as above, but at other times to the devil, as a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour," and occasionally it signifies the resurrection h. The hare, innocence and timidity. A. 2. Alpha and Omega, the first and last letters of the Greek alphabet, frequently placed on each side of the monogram or the head of Christ, signifying His divinity. The apple on a branch with the serpent twined round, betokening the fall of h See p. 331. man or original sin, (Gen. iii.) The dog, an emblem of fidelity; a hand stretched out from the clouds, de noting the omnipresence of God. A pelican feeding her young with blood from her own breast, signifying the Saviour giving Himself up for the redemption of mankind. The can delabra, Christ and His Church, the light of true doctrine, with seven branches, with reference to the seven Churches, Rev. i. 20. The figures of saints most commonly met with, are S. Peter and S. Paul, the blessed Virgin, ग्रै and her mother S. Anne, S. Joseph, and S. Agnes. Engravings of all these subjects will be found in the Roma Subterranea of Aringhi, from which the specimens here given are chiefly taken; in Roma Sotterranea opera posthuma di Antonio Bosio Romano, fol. Romæ 1632; in Mammachii Origines et Antiquitates Christianæ, tom. iii., and F. Buonarrotti Vasi Antichi di Vetro trovati ne' Cimiteri di Roma. |
