Verstorbenendarstellungen auf frühchristlichen Sarkophagen

The present study analyzes not only the images of the deceased on the Christian sarcophagi, but also highlights the fact that these representations of the deceased must be regarded as a characteristic of these sarcophagi. These representations of the deceased on the Christian sarcophagi can be divided into two groups: the first imported from pagan tradition and partly reinterpreted; the second group is made up of new images create by an innovative higher class. Like the majority of researchers, I believe that the majority of sarcophagi, apart for the more simple ones or of less quality, were carried out on order. An important result of this study is the following observation: the images of the deceased are more often reproduced on the Christian sarcophagi than on the pagan ones.