Saint Matthias was chosen by lot to replace Judas Iscariot among the Twelve Apostles after the Ascension of Christ, as recorded in the Acts of the Apostles. His selection was intended to restore the symbolic completeness of the apostolic group and was made from among those who had followed Jesus from the beginning of his ministry.

The New Testament provides no further narrative details of Matthias’s life. Later Christian tradition places his missionary activity variously in Judea or Ethiopia, and he is commonly said to have suffered martyrdom, though accounts of his death differ. His cult developed primarily in the context of the apostolic college rather than through a distinct Gospel narrative.

Saint Matthias in Art

Saint Matthias  appears in Christian art chiefly in contexts that emphasise his role within the restored apostolic group. He is most often depicted among the Twelve in cycles of the Apostles, Pentecost scenes, and representations of the early Church, rather than in independent narrative episodes.

Because Matthias lacks a developed Gospel story, his iconography is generally restrained. He may be shown holding a book or scroll to signify his apostolic authority, and in some later traditions he is associated with instruments of martyrdom. His visual representation underscores themes of apostolic succession, continuity, and divine choice rather than individual biography.