Beyond Boundaries: Scholarly Categories and the Apocryphal Mary in Text, Pictorial Art, and Iconography

Abstract This article explores the limitations of scholarly boundaries formed by the categories “Judaism,” “Christianity,” “canonical,” and “non-canonical” in our understanding and interpretation of religious images. How do these labels help us better understand or occlude us from understanding the purpose and function of religious images for both devotees and religious leadership alike? My essay centers on the image depicted on the fifth-century CE mosaics found on the triumphal arch located in the Santa Maria Maggiore Basilica in Rome with a special focus on the temple. On the top register, the Jerusalem temple is prominently depicted three times in a Christian Basilica devoted to Mary. What devotional, didactical, or homiletical function did it serve and in what ways does the application of scholarly categories and approaches help or hinder with this understanding?