Beliefs and religious practices related to martyrdom and sainthood have existed since the first periods of Christianity, and the nature of these practices was formed by the conditions of the Early Christian period in which believers were persecuted and subject to hardship and torture. During this time, the practicioners of Paganism, which was the most prevalent religion of the Roman Empire, violently suppressed all other religious movements. However, this repression only increased the resolve of these early Christians, who often made great sacrifices to protect their faith in the face of persecution, and thus paved the way for the subsequent spread of Christianity. Furthermore, this environment of persecution facilitated the creation of martyrs who sacrificed themselves for whom they saw to be the one true and holy God. The items left behind by these martyrs became sacred relics for believers who glorified in their lives and strove to keep their memories alive. The subject of this study is Saint Plato, one of the most important saints of Galatia, who the lived in the Early Christian period and whose cult endured for centuries. Saint Plato was subjected to persecution during his life and reached the level of martyrdom upon his death. This study considers the role of Saint Plato in hagiographic sources and examines how he was depicted in Byzantine paintings. Although there are not many examples of such representation, which include icons, relics, murals and manuscripts from the end of the 6th century to the 14th century, consideration of the hagiographic sources demonstrates clear differences in the style of depiction according to the period and the region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]