from Part I - Architecture and Iconography
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 04 July 2025
This chapter investigates the material culture of saint veneration in Late Antiquity, detailing how objects, architecture and inscriptions influenced devotional practices. It draws on a range of sources to investigate how saints were honoured and how their presence was made tangible through physical artefacts. The chapter argues that material culture played a crucial role in facilitating interactions between the living and the divine. Saints’ memorials, inscriptions and relics served as focal points for devotion, strengthening communal identity and religious experience. Key examples include the engraved mensa (table) from Khirbet Oum el-Ahdam, which was used for communal feasting in honour of martyrs, and wall paintings from Wadi Sarga, which depict saints in orans postures, underscoring their role as intercessors. The evidence suggests that material artefacts did more than simply commemorate saints – they actively shaped devotional practices and evolved over time to meet the needs of different generations.
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