Irenaeus in Against Heresies - The First Christian Critique of Holy Images

Irenaeus disapproves of a Gnostic group that honors images and claims to have an image of Christ made by Pontius Pilate. This may represent the first Christian criticism of holy images, but the statement is ambiguous. John Carpenter, a Protestant minister who opposes icon veneration, simply says that Irenaeus quote implicitly disapproves of this practice.