Secret symbol of Japanese Christians put up in Novgorod for 500 thousand rubles

In Novgorod for sale an unusual item. The secret symbol of Japanese and Chinese Christians worth 500 thousand rubles may interest collectors and researchers of religious culture.

In the announcement of the store on one of the most popular online trading platforms, where the artifact is exhibited, it is said that the object dates from the late XIX - early XX century. He came to Russia as a trophy from Japan in the first decades of the last century. The compact size - only 6×6 cm - does not detract from the historical value of the object: it encrypted a whole system of Christian symbols.

Thus, the image of the “Hand of God” is interpreted as a blessing and personification of the will of God the Father – the “hand of God.” The fish, known as the sign of early Christians, refers to the Son of God: it is the traditional ichthys, an acronym that reveals the name of Christ. On the left is an asterisk - it serves as a monogram of Jesus Christ ("IS XS").

Experts do not exclude that the plaque is closely related to the activities of Christian missionaries, most likely with Jesuit missions in the East.