ABSTRACT
Besides using specifically Jewish (menorah, lulav, etrog, shofar, Torah ark) and Christian symbols (cross, monogram of Christ), late antique Jews and Christians represented some of the same biblical narratives and figures in their synagogues, churches, and funerary places within the Graeco-Roman context of figural representation. Although some of the same motifs (eg, the Binding of Isaac, the Exodus) and biblical figures (eg, Samson, Noah, Daniel, Jonah) appear in Jewish and Christian contexts, the specific configurations and interpretations of the scenes are different and must be understood within the wider context of late antique Judaism and Christianity. Also interesting is the Jewish and Christian adoption of “pagan” motifs (eg, the zodiac) in the fourth to seventh centuries and its appropriation for ritual purposes (calendar).
