Ok... this is going to be an "academic" post. I'm back in school so the nerd is coming out a bit more often. Don't say I didn't warn you.
Alright, take a look at the photo down below. This statue was found on the Acropolis and dates back to Archaic Greece (I guess I should have prefaced by saying that I'm taking Greek Art and Archaeology this quarter). But, back to the statue... This type of statue was an extremely common motif--starting in Archaic Greece and going on into the Roman Empire. These types of statues were found all over the ancient world and always near temples. They depict a young man carrying a lamb across his shoulders, which indicated the sacrifice he was going to make to the gods.
So, this being such a common motif, it is understandable that it was adopted by the Early Church and used in their Christian art. And this is how the form is remembered: Christ carrying a lamb on His shoulders. But notice how Jesus turned the whole motif on its head: instead of the young man carrying his sacrifice, Christ is the sacrifice carrying the ones that He saved.
Isn't that incredible? I'm going nuts over this! Haha... for all of the junk and the perversion and the lies that I have read and learned of in my Classics classes, revelations like this make it so beyond worth it!
just thought I'd share :)
