Ann Marie Yasin, “Displaying the Sacred Past: Ancient Christian Inscriptions in Early Modern Rome,” IJCT 7 (2000-2001), pp. 39-57.

This article looks at the history of collecting early Christian inscriptions from Rome and its relationship to the study and presentation of classical epigraphy. Focusing on the epigraphic collection gathered at the church of S. Maria in Trastevere, it examines the increasing visibility of Christian inscriptions both in academic writing and in the actual walls of churches around the city. It is argued that the motivations for collecting and the mechanisms for displaying the early Christian material were fundamentally conditioned by their perceived value as not only historical documents but also religious objects.