At Caesarea Philippi, Jesus asked Simon, “Who do you say I am?” Without hesitation, Simon answered Him, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.” In front of the other disciples, he had declared the divine identity and authority of Jesus as the Christ. In reply, Jesus gave a new identity, purpose, and mission for His trusted disciple: “And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.” (Matthew 16:18-19) From that moment on, Simon Peter – or Saint Peter – assumed this new role and identity in Christ’s church, one that has persisted for two millennia. Since then, Simon Peter’s role as a leader in the Early Church and his assumption of the “keys of the kingdom of heaven” has been frequently depicted through western art.

The earliest artistic depictions of Simon Peter trace back to about the 4th century, when the practice of Christianity became legal in the Roman Empire under Emperor Constantine via the Edict of Milan in 313 AD. Prior to that, Christians were heavily persecuted by the Romans, specifically because the new faith undermined the Roman Imperial Cult. In their obedience and reverence to the Messiah, Christians rejected active participation in Roman religious activities and refused to worship the emperor and other Roman deities. To the Romans, refusal to participate in the cult was equated to treason, which resulted in torture or death. As a result, many Christians practiced their faith – and created art – in secret.

Sarcophagi are perhaps the earliest art forms depicting any of the Twelve Disciples at around the 4th century. Simon was commonly shown with a short beard, hair that covered the top of his forehead, and accompanied with Christ. In reference to the Gospels and Acts, Simon Peter may also be carrying a cross, performing a miracle, or indicating his superiority over other disciples. On the front side of a 4th or 5th century sarcophagus preserved at the Pio-Christian Museum in the Vatican, there are three scenes of the Early Church: Simon Peter’s arrest, Christ standing with Simon Peter and Paul, and Christ’s arrest. In the center panel, Simon Peter stands with Christ, holding His hand to reference Matthew 16:24.[1] On another sarcophagus, known as the Ezekiel Sarcophagus, from the 4th century, Simon Peter is the central focus of the bas relief panel. Simon Peter is shown in several Biblical and non-Biblical scenes with a scroll to indicate his authority among the disciples.[2] As shown from both sarcophagi, Simon Peter is depicted as a leader and authoritative figure for the Early Church.

Around the 5th century, Christians began to depict Simon Peter carrying the symbolic “Keys of the Kingdom of Heaven,” which were given to him by Jesus in the Gospel of Matthew. From this point onward, the keys became Simon Peter’s main symbol in his iconography, one that has lasted for nearly two-thousand years. In a 5th century marble sarcophagus at the Basilica of Sant’Apollinare in Classe, Peter is shown in the center of a bas relief , flanked by two younger men. Peter, with his short beard, touches the palm of a younger man – perhaps a disciple to Peter – on his left. Simon Peter is also shown in relief at the front of this same sarcophagus, carrying a cross and the keys of heaven as he approaches Christ on His throne.[3] Depictions of Christian scenes were not only confined to sarcophagi.

At this time, which coincided with the fall of the Western Roman Empire and continued flourishing in the Eastern Roman Empire, beautiful Byzantine mosaic depictions of Christian icons, scenes, and themes filled the new churches. At the Arian Baptistery in Ravenna, which was built under King Theodoric the Great in the 5th century, a gorgeous, colorful mosaic adorns the dome. This bright, majestic piece depicts the baptism of Jesus; surrounding this scene are the Twelve Apostles in a procession, bringing gifts and crowns to the throne of Christ. On the right side of the throne, Simon Peter, though with a white beard and minimal hair, holds the keys of heaven. Around his head is a halo, one of the first pieces of art to do so.[4] This new depiction of him continued on in Byzantine Art. At the Church of San Vitale (from around the 6th century), also in Ravenna, Peter’s mosaic portrait is located within the triumphal arch. Here, Simon Peter is depicted in his older age, sporting a white beard and hair, and a golden halo. He also has a stoic facial expression.[5] These same characteristic in Byzantine art are seen again as late as the 12th century in Sicily. At the Palatine Chapel, a beautiful mosaic of Jesus on His throne with Simon Peter to Jesus’ right and Paul on the left. Simon Peter is again shown holding the Keys of Heaven, a cross, his white hair, and a halo around his head.[6] It is very apparent that Simon Peter’s leadership role in the church is carried on throughout art.

While the Eastern Roman Empire flourished after the 5th century, the Western Roman Empire collapsed, leaving a power void across the region. In response, the Germanic peoples who sacked Rome grew in influence and power, which led to the formation of the kingdoms of the Franks, Normans, and Anglo-Saxons. Though the Middle Ages (ca. 5th-14th centuries) are commonly referred to as the Dark Ages, there was a vast richness of art, architecture, society, and culture that has been overlooked. One of the spearheads of this richness was the growing influence of the Roman Church, which claimed to have its roots in Simon Peter as the first Bishop of Rome. Their reverence of Simon Peter dominated Western art. In a wooden sculpture of Simon Peter as the first Pope, made in the 14th century in Spain and now held at The Met, Peter was depicted wearing the Papal tiara and chasuble, while holding onto the Keys of Heaven.[7] On a 12th-century stone tympanum of the Last Judgment from the Abbey Church at Sainte-Foy in Conques, France, Peter stands next to the Virgin Mary, holding a staff and keys. According to the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis, the staff represents Simon Peter’s role as the chief shepherd among Christ’s flock, which is based upon John 12:15. Though other figures, including Emperor Charlemagne of the Franks, stand behind Peter, it is only he and the Virgin Mary who have halos.[8] At the Cathedrale Notre-Dame de Paris, constructed between the 12th and 14th centuries, a statue of Simon Peter flanked the Portal of the Last Judgment. He is seen with his typical attributes, holding the Keys of Heaven and at the front of the other disciples.[9] In a 13th-century illuminated book, known as Madame Marie’s Picture Book, Simon Peter is shown with a balding head of white hair and short beard as he inspects the shroud with John.[10] In a 12th-century fresco at the Convent Church of St. John the Baptist in Switzerland, Simon Peter’s martyrdom is shown. He has a golden halo and is depicted being crucified upside-down, per tradition.[11] From the Keys of Heaven to his upside-down crucifixion, the art of the Middle Ages reveals the variety of depictions and iconography of Simon Peter.

Art historians generally date the rise of the Renaissance to about the 14th century, just as a shift in art and literature began in Italy. Perhaps the earliest Italian Renaissance artist was Giotto of the late 13th and early 14th centuries. In his magnum opus work, which were the fresco paintings in the Scrovegni Chapel, Giotto depicted Simon Peter with his gray hair and short beard adjacent to Christ during the Last Supper.[12] Around 1320, Giotto also created a beautiful wood panel triptych, Stefaneschi Triptych, featuring Simon Peter’s martyrdom for the Pinacoteco Vaticana in Rome. Simon Peter is depicted emaciated, with his signature gray hair and beard, as he succumbs to his injuries on an upside-down cross. Similarly to other crucifixion scenes, he is surrounded by angels and many of the same viewers of Jesus’s crucifixion, including Mary Magdalene. At the top of this special scene, Simon Peter is shown ascending into heaven toward Jesus.[13] In the Church of Santa Maria Novella in Florence, Andrea di Bonaiuto da Firenze painted a fresco of Jesus saving Simon Peter in the Sea of Galilee, known as St. Peter Falters on the Sea. While the other disciples look on in fear and concern, Jesus reaches out His hand to rescue Simon Peter. Here, Simon Peter is once again depicted in his signature gray beard and hair with a halo around his head.[14] As seen in the Renaissance, most of Simon Peter’s iconography shows him in various Gospel/narrative scenes, as a leader among the disciples, in martyrdom, and with gray hair and halo. In another unique Renaissance piece from the Basilica of San Pietro in Venice, Marco Basaiti depicted a gray-haired Simon Peter sitting atop his throne, adorned in the Papal Tiara with his Keys to the Kingdom of Heaven. Like other dedicated Catholics, Basaiti’s work addressed the long direct line between Simon Peter and the contemporary Papacy.[15] Tintoretto’s 1550 piece, St. Peter’s Vision of the Cross in the Church of the Madonna del Orto, also made that connection by showing Simon Peter wearing the Papal gown when he encountered Jesus outside of Rome.[16] The Papal connection to Simon Peter was most notable in St. Peter’s Basilica, the seat of the Bishop of Rome.

Undoubtedly the most well-known and notable pieces of art dedicated to Simon Peter is St. Peter’s Basilica in the Vatican City, which stood atop the disciple’s tomb. While most believe the current basilica is the original church, St. Peter’s Basilica was first constructed in the 4th century during the reign of Roman Emperor Constantine to honor Simon Peter. By the late 15th century, however, the original church, known as Old St. Peter’s, was in need of significant repair. Much of the disrepair occurred during the Avignon Papacy, the nearly-70-year period when the Papacy left Rome for France. While the decision to rebuild St. Peter’s was decided by Pope Nicholas V in the mid-15th century, it was Pope Julius II who overhauled the plans for the new basilica to be a masterpiece of art and glory to the Pope. For 120 years, the basilica was constructed to honor of Simon Peter, as well as in tribute to the Papacy. It featured the works of Bramante, Michelangelo, Maderno, and Bernini, all four being some of the greatest architects and sculptors in history.

While the entire St. Peter’s Basilica is named in honor of Simon Peter, there are several works within the basilica itself that pay tribute to the disciple. Perched above the altar is Bernini’s Chair of St. Peter, a monumental reliquary of the actual throne from Simon Peter. Made of bronze, Bernini work features an intricately throne that encases the relic flanked by the four Doctors of the Church. Atop the throne is a beautiful gilt bronze cathedra that is illuminated by a stained glass window. This marvelous Baroque piece was built between 1657 and 1666. Also sculpted by Bernini is the Baldacchino di San Pietro that is placed directly above the tomb and under the central dome. Though it was designed to both mark the tomb of Simon Peter and centralize the focus on the altar, the Baldacchino was filled with symbolism of the patron Barberini family and did not feature much iconography of Simon Peter himself. There are also several statues of Simon Peter inside and outside the basilica: Arnolfo di Cambia’s 14th century bronze statue within the basilica and Guiseppe de Fabris’ 19th century statue in St. Peter’s Square. Several paintings of Simon Peter also adorned the various altars within the basilica.

The pinnacle of iconography of Simon Peter was no doubt St. Peter’s Basilica. Since the Renaissance and Baroque periods (14th-17th centuries), Christian themes slowly degraded from the art scenes. However, Simon Peter’s legacy as the leader of Christ’ s disciples and of the Roman Catholic Church remains forever. For over two-thousand years, Simon Peter’s likeness was depicted with special characteristics that made him stand out among the disciples. He was usually portrayed next to Christ Himself, with gray hair and short beard, holding a staff or the Keys to the Kingdom of Heaven. Sometimes, to show his sainthood, Simon Peter was adorned with a halo. Across the West, in museums and churches alike, viewers of these marvelous works can easily spot Simon Peter as the leader and father of the church. In John 6, it was Peter who identified the deity of Christ as the Messiah: “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life; and we have believed, and have come to know, that you are the Holy One of God.”

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