Rheinisches Landesmuseum, Bonn

Chi Rho on Gravestone of Desideratus (5th cent.)

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Detail of Christogram (Chi Rho) on the gravestone of Desideratus, 5th century AD. Found 1882/83 in an early medieval graveyard in Kobern-Gondorf. The birds and the Christogram symbolize the Christian message of salvation. This shows that the Romans living here were Christians. The Latin name Desideratus ("the desired one") reveals the deep love of his parents. While the text stands in the Greco-Roman tradition, the the conception of the afterlife is fully Christian: Hope for Paradise brings comfort.

1/24/08 2:35 PM
Canon EOS 400D DIGITAL
File name: 1255

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