The martyr-heroes, in this instance 'Petrus et Paulus,' were also venerated in portraiture in gold glass. Peter and Paul in gold glass.

Decius was the emperor in Rome from 249-251 AD. There was intermittent persecution under Emperor Decius. Bust of Decius.

View from the chord of the apse looking across the area of the apse, down the nave, to the narthex and exonarthex. A distance of over 600 feet.

The Colosseum, which could sit 50,000 people for the games, was reputedly the site for the martyrdom of many early Christians. However, it should be noted that there is no contemporary literary or iconographic evidence for ...

The wealth of St. Leonidas is indicated not only by its immense size but by the elaborate carving on remaining capitals as well as the marble of the columns.

Shot of Christ as central figure in the dome of the church. While the icon of Cyril and Methodius is covered with silver and placed above the bishop's chair, nonetheless the tradition of placing Christ in the dominant ...

Long-shot of nave and apse with original mosaics dating to the time of Justinian. Note that in the center of the nave is an altar. This ancient altar is in the north African position.

Entrance to the 'Treasury of Atreus,' Mycenae, Greece, ca 1330 BC. Alternately the tomb of Agamemnon.

Moving out from the center of the colosseum, the arches were part of the upward sloping structure for the seating but also led out of the colosseum. Supporting arch, Salona colosseum.

Loculi within the arcosoleum of the mausoleum.

Persecutions of early Christians resulted in martyrdom for many. One of the earliest persecutions was under the Emperor Nero (64 AD). Bust of Nero, the Museum at Corinth.

The town and surroundings of Alberobello in Southern Italy maintains the ancient practice of creating tholoid structures with unmortared stone. Stepped tholos in Alberobello, Southern Italy.

Even as the fastigium implied the presence of a deity, so the domical reception hall immediately behind it reinforced the concept of celestial power. Shot of the reception hall behind the fastigium of Diocletian's palace.

As we move toward an understanding of the transition from martyrdom to the veneration of martyrs we can do so through an understanding of the iconography of the martyr-hero in terms of feast, image, heroa, and dome. Here ...

Interior of Sant'Agnese showing the balcony for the catechumens.

The domical shape of the tholos was understood to be a representation of the heavens and thus of eternity, divinity, and power. Tholoid-shaped homes in Alberobello, Southern Italy.

Details of exquisite carving of the capitals in the cathedral. Carved capitals in the Split Cathedral.

Reliquary of Sant' Agnese directly below the altar on the floor above.

Model of projected shelter for refrigeria at site for mausolea.

Porphyry sarcophagus of Santa Constanza, daughter of emperor Constantine.