Byzantine Mosaics

Located in a sanctuary at the Church of San Vitale in Ravenna, Italy, the mosaic images of Justinian and Theodora created around 548 CE, still impart their imperial power. At first observation it appears as if the two imperial rulers are simply carrying the bread and wine as part of the Eucharist celebration in the mass, but there are other more profound meanings in these images.

Considering the Justinian panel first, the Emperor is central in the composition, head surrounded by the golden light of a halo, wearing the imperial regalia, he holds a golden paten. He is flanked on his right side by elite men from his administration and to his left Bishop Maximianus (identified by inscription) and other clergymen. The elite members of his administration, identified by their purple stripe, are represented as unique individuals leading scholars to imply that they may represent actual portraits of men important to the Emperor. Soldiers located on the outer edge of the composition stand behind a shield emblazoned with the Chi-Rho. There are no background details to this scene, the figures are surrounded by golden light.

The symbolism of this piece attempts to present Justinian as a divinely appointed ruler. Halos are used to establish a hierarchy in the mosaics. In the entire sanctuary mosaic cycle at San Vitale, halos are exclusive to Christ, Saint Vitalis, the Angels, Justinian and Theodora. The clergy in Justinian’s mosaic do not wear a halo implying that Justinian is more elevated than the clergy. While Christ, the Angels, and the Saint Vitalis are presented in a high-up position on the apse, representing their divine authority in heaven, on earth Justinian has divine power. The Chi Rho on the shield of the soldier connects Justinian to Constantine the Great. Justinian hoped to usher in a new Golden Age in the Byzantine Empire, and he wanted to be the new Constantine. The gold plate he offers is not the literal offering as part of a mass but a representation of his dedication to church financing and construction. “Justinian’s gift-giving, sacred aura, and the promise of a new age he inaugurates, one discerns his immediate predecessors and especially the specter of the first Christian imperial founder, Constantine.”¹ The dominating message of this panel is Justinian, like Constantine, is the divinely appointed ruler of the church, military, and administration of the empire.

In the panel featuring Theodora, the Empress also wears imperial regalia in bold purple with the Magi embroidered onto the edge of her cape. A radiant golden halo surrounds Theodora’s head, and she is holding a chalice. To Theodora’s left is a group of women from her court, each member wearing elegant garments, a determination of their prestigious status. While the figures of Justinian and his attendants fill the entire frame, Theodora and her attendants are presented in the middle-ground. At the right of Empress are two of the same elite men found in the Justinian portrait. Theodora, even though she was petite in life, dominates the others in scale. Theodora is also singled out by her position centered within an apse in the background architecture. Some speculate the scene takes place in her reception room at the Grand Royal Palace in Constantinople.

The Theodora panel shares much of the symbolism present in the Justinian mosaic. The halo that surrounds Theodora’s head, like Justinian, implies her elevated station as a divine ruler. The presence of two of the same attendants from the Justinian mosaic shows that these elite figures are still subservient in power and scale to Theodora. The absence of soldiers and clergy in the scene tells us that Justinian, not Theodora, is the authority in those particular areas. Her presence in the Great Palace audience hall lets the viewer know her authority is likely a shared public administration of the empire. Like Justinian, there is an implied connection to Constantine. The three kings (Magi) embroidered on her cloak likely represent, pilgrimage, mainly the first pilgrimage of Helena to Jerusalem. She is connecting herself to Helena, and like Justinian, dedicated to church financing and construction. Theodora is, “proud and startling with the divine light of her halo and confident in her giving, it is likewise properly viewed as a late avatar in a deep lineage of female founders.”²

Justinian and Theodora share their sacred power as administrators of the empire, and the founders of a new golden age. They are partners that revel in their divine authority and connection to a lineage of other great rulers, especially the first Christian Emperor Constantine.

1. Angelova, D. (2015). CONCLUSION:Sacredness, Partnership, and Founding in the San Vitale Mosaics. In Sacred Founders: Women, Men, and Gods in the Discourse of Imperial Founding, Rome through Early Byzantium (pp. 261-276). University of California Press. Retrieved April 26, 2020, from www.jstor.org/stable/10.1525/j.ctt19632rv.18

2. Angelova, CONCLUSION:Sacredness, Partnership, and Founding in the San Vitale Mosaics.

OTHER SOURCES

Stokstad, Marilyn, “Medieval Art” Second Edition, Routledge, 2018, Print

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