Why are cherubs baby faced? Do they signify innocence or were they depicted differently at any time?

Down Syndrome in Art

Middle-Age and Renaissance artists painted several angels and Infant Jesus with physical characteristics of Down Syndrome children. This fact, surprising for some people, may be observed in many paintings.

Some small angels, Infant Jesus and noblemen, immortalized by painting, in fact have the facial expression, oriental eyes, flat face, fat arms and short hands of the trissomic children. Even the contortionism of the barroque angels - that used to seem a mere imagination of the painters for us - now we recognize in truth, any time we watch the curved back and classic ballet positions of our Daniel, sleeping in the craddle!

Cherub Syndrome

according to some christians cherubs look like wheels, like the cover of madeline l engle's a wind in the door. Cherub concepts was stolen from Pagans and the christians took it as thier own. but so much history is gone that people dont remember or dont care anymore.

Real Cherubims were apart of the ranks of angles that are within the Heavenly Royal Court Retinue. (not baby-faced)

Others include the Seraphim, ArchAngels & Messengers.

SERAPHIM: A choir of Angels that were assigned to singing the praises of YHWH continuously (Is 6) They had 3 sets of wings.

CHERIUM: Were labeled the guardions of all tHat is sacred. They were the guardians of Eden (Gen 3:24) & depictions of them as the 3-dimensional Cherubs that stood on the top of the Art of the Covenant.(Ex 25:18-22)

ARCHANGELS: Cheif Angels w/ the highest rank, assigned to many task & powers that included universal, planetry, elemental powers, messages to humans, ading, defending & battling for humans. Most known are : Michael, Raphael, Gabriel, Uriel, Ariel, Sariel, Raguel & Jeremiel (II Esdra 4:36 & I Enoch 20)

MESSENGERS: Most were un-named & delievered messages to & from in & out of Heaven to eArth . (I Thes 4:16)

Satan was a cherub.

Ezek 28:14 "You were the anointed cherub who covers, And I placed you there. You were on the holy mountain of God; You walked in the midst of the stones of fire.

Ezek 28:15 "You were blameless in your ways From the day you were created, Until unrighteousness was found in you.

If you read about them in the bible theyre some of the biggest fiercest angels in heaven.

I think its ironic that theyre artistically depicted as weak infantile creatures.

I think it really took hold during the victorian periods when people just liked the idea of cute babyish angels. Although i know a lot of 14-15th century painters depicted them as fat children with little wings.

What IS the deal with that?

I think you are speaking of "cupids"? Cherubs, according to the Bible, are guardians. That is why they were symbolic on the Ark of the Covenant.

Be good.

Doesn't Cherub mean winged child?

Cherubs are more powerful than angels, and a single angel killed 185,000 Assyrians in one night.

Yeah, they got baby-faces . . . uh-huh

one of the istructions God Almighty gave in The Ten Commandment was "thou shall not make a graven image of anything, in Heaven or on Earth. thous shall not bow to them or worship them.....".

what you see dipicted in pictures are not true representations of what they are meant to reflect.

what we are made to believe most often in picture are not the true account of the true things. for instance, the devil is depicted as a red, horned, long tailed demon creature. this is not so. the Bible gives a contrary picture in the book of Ezekiel.

this gruesome picture is also a way of escape for the devil, in that he is able to diguise himself as an angel lof light to those who are not knowledgeable.

its always better to rely on Biblical accounts than to rely on artist impressions.