Heaven on Earth:

A Late-Antique Masterpiece and the Rise of Christian Culture 300-600 AD

"...we are increasingly aware of the astounding new beginnings associated with this period: we go to it to discover why Europe became Christian and why the Near East became Muslim..." Peter Brown, The World of Late Antiquity (London, 1971)

We are grateful to all of the people who have helped to make this exhibition possible, and especially to the private collectors who have so generously loaned their wonderful objects.

All objects in the exhibition are for sale except those from private collections.

Introduction

The three centuries between 300 and 600 AD witnessed the slow decline of the classical tradition and its eventual assimilation into a rising Judeo-Christian culture. Pockets of classical learning remained alive, nevertheless, among the wealthy and aristocratic elite. For the average Roman citizen, however, it was Christianity that provided a sense of community and a glimmer of hope in a turbulent and threatening world. By responding to the needs of the lower classes, the Church continued to gain converts from other competing religions. The conversion of the Roman Emperor Constantine the Great to Christianity in 312 was a turning point for the Roman Empire that would in time fundamentally alter the course of Western civilization. As if in anticipation of this critical event, Christianity had already spread its roots deep into the fertile social fabric of early fourth-century life.

Apart from a few periods of religious conflict, Christians and pagans lived together peacefully sharing a common heritage. It was entirely natural, therefore, that Christian artists would rely on established classical images and that gradually these pagan images would be infused with Christian meaning. By the late sixth and early seventh centuries, however, a visual language that was completely new and exclusively Christian came to the fore. The appearance of this new Christian imagery marks a clear break with Late Antique pictorial traditions.

The exhibition begins with a masterpiece of Late Antique metalwork, a fourth-century octagonal bronze chariot fitting weighing over five pounds. On each of the eight sides of this object, colorful metal inlays of silver, red copper and niello form dense tapestry-like scenes evoking the pleasures of rustic country life and the bounty offered by land and sea. This magnificent object with its extensive depictions of the pagan 'Good Life' stands at the center of this show, much like the hub of a wheel whose spokes radiate outward touching each of the objects on view.

The exhibition is organized into 3 sections: