Archaeologists in Turkey have discovered a fresco of a Roman-looking Jesus as the ‘Good Shepherd’, which is being hailed as one of the most important finds from Anatolia’s early Christian era.
The artwork was found in August in an underground tomb near the city of Iznik, where the Nicene Creed, a fundamental statement of the Christian faith, was adopted in 325 AD. The tomb itself is believed to date from the third century, when the area was still under the Roman Empire and Christians faced persecution.
POPE LEO
Archaeologists clean and restore frescoes in a 3rd century tomb where a rare early Christian depiction of Jesus as the “Good Shepherd” was discovered, in Iznik, Turkey, Friday, December 12, 2025. (Khalil Hamra/AP Photo)
The fresco shows a youthful, clean-shaven Jesus, dressed in a toga and carrying a goat on his shoulders The Associated Pressthe first international media organization to gain access to the grave. The outlet noted that researchers say the fresco represents one of the rare cases in Anatolia in which Jesus is depicted with Roman attributes.
The project’s lead archaeologist believes the artwork could be the “only example of its kind in Anatolia,” the AP reported.
A fresco depicting Jesus as the ‘Good Shepherd’ adorns the wall of a 3rd century tomb in Hisardere, where archaeologists have discovered one of Anatolia’s best-preserved early Christian works of art, in Iznik, Turkey, Friday, December 12, 2025. (Khalil Hamra/AP Phto)
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Pope Leo XIV recently visited the city as part of his first foreign trip since taking over at the Vatican. While Pope Leo
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan (L) welcomes Pope Leo (Utku Ucrak/Anadolu via Getty Images)
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Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan presented a tile painting of the discovery of the ‘Good Shepherd’ to the pope, according to the AP.
While in Turkey, Pope Leo XIV was joined by Eastern and Western patriarchs and priests who prayed that Christians would one day be united again. They prayed together at the site where the council produced the Nicene Creed. The men recited the confession of faith, which the pope said was “fundamental to Christians’ journey toward full communion,” according to the AP.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
