Ravenna Mosaic 2

 
Ravenna Mosaic 2

Ravenna is a small city in north-eastern Italy. It was an important centre during the late Roman / early Byzantine period and has eight UNESCO World Heritage sites. These are mainly early Christian churches, which show the development and conflict of ideas through art.

This picture shows the main mosaic in the apse of the Basilica of Sant Apollinare Classe. The church is a few miles out of Ravenna proper in an area that used to serve as the town's port. It was consecrated in 549 CE.

The mosaic contains complex symbolism and iconography. The top section shows Jesus flanked by symbolic winged representations of the four gospel writers. The main mosaic shows the transfiguration of Jesus. His transfigured face is represented in the centre of a large, jeweled cross. [The face is difficult to make out in a picture of this scale.] In the golden sky above the cross are Old Testament prophets Moses and Elijah. Just below the sky are three lambs, representing three of the disciples who were present. Below them is Saint Apollinare surrounded by sheep who represent his faithful followers.

This picture has a lot of fine detail, so please click the "download" button to see the image as I submitted it (1216 x 912 Pixels, 443Kb).

See also

For more information about what is shown here see
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basilica…

Panasonic DMC-LX7 camera edited in Photoshop Elements.

Constructive criticism welcome.

(c) bobswin.deviantart.com - photo 2013, processing 2014.

This picture is not public domain, please do not use it elsewhere.