Final answer:
Early Christian art was more symbolic than Roman art and focused on conveying spiritual messages rather than realistic portrayals. It adapted Roman traditions to Christian themes, and by the Byzantine period, art became more stylized and abstract, suitable for both church and private devotion.
Step-by-step explanation:
Early Christian art was more symbolic and less materialistic than Roman art because it was challenging to depict complex theological concepts such as the Trinity or salvation. Unlike Roman art, which often celebrated material wealth and earthly power, Early Christian art focused on spiritual messages and was less concerned with realistic portrayals. The emergence of Christian art can be traced back to the need to convey Christian ideals in a Greco-Roman culture that was highly visual.
The development of Christian art was also influenced by doctrinal concerns. Themes of death and resurrection were central to Christian belief but were not represented as explicitly in art until later. Instead of focusing on monumental sculptures, Early Christian artists adopted and adapted Roman traditions like portrait busts and sarcophagus reliefs, infusing them with Christian symbolism.
By the Byzantine era, Christian art had developed further, with a stylized aesthetic that downplayed real-world accuracy in favor of portraying spiritual truth. Byzantine artists standardized facial features in their works and adopted a flatter, more abstract style. This conveyed a sense of the divine and ethereal, rather than the temporal and physical. Small, personal religious items became popular for worship both in the church and at home, marking a shift from public to private devotion.