Sarcophagus of Saints Sergius and Bacchus

Sergius and Bacchus, the legend says, were Roman officers who were exposed as Christians when they would not worship the gods. Around this sarcophagus their story runs without a break, one scene flowing into the next. On one side they turn to the true God, shown only as a hand reaching down from the sky, while their companions stand before an idol on a throne that looks like a winged devil. In that crowd is a ruler, whom the museum identifies as the emperor Maximinus Daia. Next the two are brought before his throne and refuse him with raised hands. Round the corner they are led away as prisoners, and on the far side the governor Antiochus condemns Bacchus to be beaten to death and Sergius to be beheaded.

For the tortures the sculptor looked at something far older. The museum traces those vivid scenes to late Roman sarcophagi carved with battles against barbarians. On the last short side the saints, gesturing eagerly, present the kneeling abbot Bonifacio to Christ enthroned, and on the lid two archers take aim at an eagle.