Turkish archaeologists uncover a rare 3rd-century fresco depicting a youthful, Roman-style Jesus as the Good Shepherd in an Iznik tomb, highlighting early Christian symbolism amid pagan transitions.
Newsroom (13/12/2025 Gaudium Press ) Archaeologists have discovered a remarkably preserved fresco depicting Jesus Christ as the “Good Shepherd” in an underground tomb near Iznik, a site steeped in early Christian history. The artwork, found in August in the Hisardere village necropolis, represents one of the rarest and best-preserved examples of this motif in Anatolia.
The painting portrays a clean-shaven, youthful Jesus in Roman attire — a simple tunic or toga — with a large horned goat draped across his shoulders, flanked by pairs of goats in a symmetrical composition. Positioned on the north wall behind a raised platform where the deceased rested, the scene echoes classical Roman artistic conventions while conveying core early Christian themes.
Researchers emphasize the depiction’s significance: a beardless Christ aligns with second- and third-century Roman visual culture, contrasting with later Byzantine images of a bearded, mature Jesus. This Roman influence highlights cultural syncretism in Anatolia as Christianity took root in a region dominated by classical traditions.
The “Good Shepherd” imagery draws directly from the Gospel of John 10:11, where Jesus declares, “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.” In an era when Christians faced persecution under the Roman Empire and overt symbols like the cross were risky, this pastoral motif subtly expressed faith, symbolizing protection, salvation, resurrection, and divine guidance. It was especially poignant in funerary settings, offering hope for eternal life.
Though central to early Christianity, few such depictions survive in Anatolia. Lead archaeologist Gulsen Kutbay called it possibly the “only example of its kind” in the region, while others note it as the best preserved.
The cramped chamber tomb’s walls and ceiling feature additional frescoes: bird and plant motifs, portraits of noble men and women with slave attendants, and a symposium scene on the west wall showing a married couple reclining at a feast — likely the tomb’s primary occupants. Eren Erten Ertem, an archaeologist from the Iznik Museum, described these as illustrating “a transition from late paganism to early Christianity,” blending pagan afterlife banquets with emerging Christian iconography.
Excavations revealed skeletons of five individuals: two young adults, a six-month-old infant, and two of undetermined age due to poor preservation, according to anthropologist Ruken Zeynep Kose.
Dating to the third century based on structural features matching other tombs in the Hisardere Necropolis — which operated from the second to fifth centuries and served varied social classes — the chamber aligns with a time of cautious Christian expression in the late Roman Empire.
The discovery gains added resonance from Iznik’s — ancient Nicaea’s — legacy. Here, in A.D. 325, Emperor Constantine convened the First Council of Nicaea, where over 300 bishops formulated the Nicene Creed, a foundational statement of faith still recited by millions.
Last month, Pope Leo XIV visited Iznik for his first overseas trip, marking the creed’s 1,700th anniversary. Accompanied by Eastern and Western church leaders, he prayed for Christian unity. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan gifted the pope a tile painting replicating the newly found Good Shepherd fresco.
Anatolia played host to other pivotal Christian moments: St. Paul’s birthplace in Tarsus, St. John’s final years in Ephesus, and possibly the Virgin Mary’s last days nearby.
As work continues at the expansive Hisardere site — known for unique terracotta-roofed chambers, sarcophagi, and hypogea — experts anticipate more revelations about ancient Nicaea’s multicultural and religious dynamics, further illuminating Christianity’s spread through Asia Minor.
- Raju Hasmukh with files from Ancient Origins and Crux Now
Related Images:
