The staurogram combines the Greek letters tau-rho to stand in for parts of the Greek words for “cross” (stauros) and “crucify” (stauroō) in Bodmer papyrus P75. Staurograms serve as the earliest images of Jesus on the cross, predating other Christian crucifixion imagery by 200 years.

Some of the earliest known artistic representations of Jesus date to the mid-third century A.D., more than two centuries after his death. These are the paintings in the ancient catacombs of St. Domitilla in Rome, first discovered some 400 years ago.

The earliest apparent representations of Jesus are in the Roman catacombs. The art is stereotypical as are other portraits of this period. In these portraits Jesus is portrayed beardless, as the Good Shepherd. By the fourth century, however, he has grown a beard and begins to look more familiar.

A team of Spanish Egyptologists may have found one of the earliest-known images of Jesus Christ, in a 6th-century tomb unearthed in Upper Egypt. The 'exceptional' discovery at Al Bahnasa (pictured above), 160km south of Cairo, is thought to date from the the 6th century C.E., according to the team headed by Spanish archaeologist Josep Padro.