Description
This beautifully decorated Roman sarcophagus is on display in the grounds of the Byzantine Church of St. John the Theologian. A sarcophagus is a stone coffin, usually adorned with sculpture or an inscription. Here we see the decoration of one of the end panels of the sarcophagus. The long side of the sarcophagus, visible on the left, was not decorated, an indication that the sarcophagus was originally placed against a wall of the tomb chamber. This sarcophagus testifies to the existence of Philadelphia of the New Testament period.