Fish Gem
250–350
- Medium
- rock crystal
- Dimensions
- Overall: 3.5 x 7.5 cm (1 3/8 x 2 15/16 in.)
- Genre
- Glyptic
- Museum
- Cleveland Museum of Art
Tags
Syria(?) or Anatolia, early Christian
About
To avoid punishment, early Christians practiced their faith in secret. Images of fish were part of a code developed to refer to Jesus Christ. To those in the know, the Greek word for fish (ICHTHYS), was an acronym for the phrase Iesous Christos Theou Yios Soter which translates as Jesus Christ, Son of God, Savior.