But the wonderful thing is that this mosaic depicts not just the event, but also the meaning of the event its many meanings. Apollinare Nuovo, Ravenna6th century. It is set in divine time, in kairos, where past, present and future exist together in Christ. esk; Dansk; Deutsch; English; Espaol; Franais . Justin, that the Eastern Orthodox Church could learn a lot from the creative approach of the early Western Church when it comes to expressing timeless theological truths in its church schema. 0% 0% found this document not useful, Mark this document as not useful Also, on either side of the great jewelled cross are three sheep. And so we have this church as evidence of these two different beliefs But we can delve deeper still into our mosaics other layers of meaning. SPEAKER 2: What we do have is an extraordinary apse mosaic. And we have also the white garments of Moses and Elijah, which, standing as they do against a golden background, appear not quite so brilliant as the sheep. But I would suggest that our cross also suggests the Ascension, or rather the words of the angels accompanying the Ascension: Men of Galilee, they said, why do you stand here looking into the sky? The highest trees are arranged in a row along the top, at a similar distance from each other but not precisely so, and each is a little different from the others. Mosaico di scuola ravennate italo-bizantina, completato entro il 526 d.C. dal cosiddetto 'maestro di Sant'Apollinare'. But, as we shall see, these themes are nevertheless theologically implicit in the mosaics explicit linking of the Transfiguration with the Holy Liturgy and the Lords Second Coming. Apollinare Nuovo, Ravenna, 6th century. In the centre is Christ in a medallion. Her history is extremely interesting. The purpose of His incarnation was to gather all creation into Himself, and in particular to unite our human nature with His own divine nature. THE MOSAIC APSE OF SANTAPOLLINARE IN CLASSE, RAVENNA: SantApollinare in Classe mosaic. Read the reviews of your fellow travelers. Likewise, Christ returned to the world with His three disciples after His Transfiguration. But he also dressed like a Roman senator, his toga bearing the senatorial a shoulder to hem stripe. This is usually taken to refer primarily to His crucifixion, but I would suggest that at the same time it can refer to His Ascension, His departure from earth into heaven. It is in fact a depiction of the Transfiguration of Christ, as described in the Gospel accounts of Matthew 17:1-8, Mark 9:2-8 and, most fully, in Luke 9:28-36. a. The Church can prophetically oppose a secular power that acts contrary to Gods commandments, but it can also accept material assistance from it if this genuinely aids the Churchs spiritual work and benefits peoples lives. Add to this the emerald green and you feel embraced by the garden. And at the front of the But now we know the praises of this pillar,which glowing fire ignites for God's honour,a fire into many flames divided,yet never dimmed by sharing of its light,for it is fed by melting wax,drawn out by mother beesto build a torch so precious.[2]. Another clue to this link between the Lords Transfiguration and His Second Coming is His other statement, eight days before the Transfiguration: Truly I tell you, some who are standing here will not taste death before they see the kingdom of God. By the 6th century BC the Assyrians had adopted it as pardesu, domain. How do we know that this mosaic depicts the Transfiguration? almost lying on their sides, the way that the ancient In this context it is worthwhile tracing the development of the word paradise, since its many associations accrued over time are present in our mosaic. While he was speaking, a cloud appeared and covered them, and they were afraid as they entered the cloud. Basilica di Sant'Apollinare Nuovo: Amazing Biblical Mosaics - See 2,083 traveler reviews, 2,347 candid photos, and great deals for Ravenna, Italy, at Tripadvisor. (B) assigned The artists power over his or her medium is that of craft and wisdom (Minerva the Roman god of wisdom was pertinently also the good of crafts). Miracle of Loaves and Fishes (St. Apollinare Nuovo), top register; Christ in purple and gold, beardless; located in direct center to focus on majesty/divine nature; cruciform halo, and figure makes the shape of a cross; illusionistic blue sky is gone in favor of solid gold, but green ground is not; martyrs carry gold crowns, top register and middle built by Theodoric; top register depicts scenes from life of Christ; middle depicts Old Testament patriarchs or prophets; third is Byzantine style, depicting martyred saints, divided by gender, details and decorations (St. Apollinare Nuovo), mosaics in apse and arch are missing; capitals are more abstract/medieval, columns are imported; may have had a coffered ceiling, although the one there now is not original; Milanese masonry, iconic, figures are flat "cutouts", forms are stiff and anti-classical, frozen posture, garments of saints defy form, both naturalism of classical world and abstraction of Constantinian/Byzantium, returning to abstraction after classical revival, Early Christian, around 424, Ravenna; cross plan w/ aisleless nave, common in Ravenna; barrel-vaulted arms (mausoleum); Milanese masonry technique, commending of a soul to God, salvation and grace through Christian tradition and study (Mausoleum of Galla Placidia), relationship of Sant'Apollinare to St. Peter's and St. Paul's, wider and higher nave for impression of greater space; long rows of figures instead of individual patterns on wall space; echoes the same floor plan, 3-aisled basilican plan; echoes earlier standard plans; side aisles have arcade, Byron Almen, Dorothy Payne, Stefan Kostka, The Language of Composition: Reading, Writing, Rhetoric, Lawrence Scanlon, Renee H. Shea, Robin Dissin Aufses, Eric Hinderaker, James A. Henretta, Rebecca Edwards, Robert O. Self, Comprehensive American History 03.00 Module T. So what our mosaic concentrates on is not so much Christs transfiguration as ours. In our mosaic we find coloured clouds both in the apse and on the uppermost register (executed in the 9th century) atop the triumphal arch. They are labelled Moses and Elijah (MOYSES and HbELYAS to be precise), and it is they who appeared with Christ during the Transfiguration. They represent Peter, James and John whom Christ took onto mount Tabor to witness His transformation. Perhaps this is the meaning of the ciborium held by the emperors attendant. And so you can see this Our mosaic seems to be saying that the Transfiguration transports us humans back to paradise, our original home where we were intended to meet and commune with God. But at the same time this sentence it refers also to His Second Coming. The disciples kept this to themselves and did not tell anyone at that time what they had seen. The sheep are also of course white, and stand out particularly against the green. The secret to this mosaic lies in the fact that it depicts not merely the past, but also the present and the future. Whom do you seek? Supposing him to be the gardener, she said to him, Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away.. For the Greeks it became paradeisos, a park for animals. They reflect the dominant role that mosaics had assumed in the churches of the . Hence we find below the cross also the Latin words, Salus Mundi, the salvation of the world. (remains, remain), Early Christian, 417-421; Church of Santa Croce, Ravenna; Placidia wasn't actually buried there, but was a patron of it; made of spolia/reused bricks; may have also been a memorial chapel, may have been buried in San Vitale; 13th century held that she was buried in the mausoleum; most likely buried in Rome in St. Peter's, windows first glass, now alabaster; barrel vaults in the equal cross arms; originally made of ancient yellow marble; large sarcophagi, probably last few Roman emperors. I think there are few examples of liturgical art that embody such a wide spectrum of Christs work as this mosaic at SantApollinare in Classe. people changes the images for "political" purposes. As he was praying, the appearance of his face changed, and his clothes became as bright as a flash of lightning. It is a precursor to the rich vision that St Maximus the Confessor was to write about a century later, where in Christ the human person becomes both microcosm and mediator, to use Lars Thunbergs phrase. church, furthest toward the apse where the Eucharist would be performed, is a scene of the Last Supper. We think of Mount Sinai in particular, where Moses met the Lord. That this is a valid interpretation of the ninety-nine stars is affirmed by the inclusion of Abraham in a mosaic panel on the south wall of the apse. It embraces you. The Creator in His turn transfigures and offers this world back to us. If you're behind a web filter, please make sure that the domains *.kastatic.org and *.kasandbox.org are unblocked. The Miracle of the Loaves and Fishes mosaic located at the top register of the nave wall of Sant' Apollinare Nuovo in Ravenna, Italy was made circa 504 AD. The creation account in Genesis (2:15) tells us that The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it. How does one overcome this obstacle and encourage the commissioners of these works to open their minds a bit? These female saints on the north wall of the church stand opposite opposite a mosaic of male martyr- saints on the south wall whose clothing reveals different gammadia. And what we see are first built by Theodoric to be his palace chapel, Both sides follow a similar design, with long rows of people from end to end of the nave, and further characters between the windows at the next level, and then an additional . While he was speaking, a cloud appeared and covered them, and they were afraid as they entered the cloud. 21:23). He wants to show His disciples the purpose and end of His work a few days before His crucifixion. Mosaics in Sant'Apollinare Nuovo, Ravenna (6th century) The sumptuous mosaics that cover the walls of the nave in Sant'Apollinare Nuovo reflect the dominant role that mosaics had assumed in the churches of the Christian East. On one side female Seen from the outside, the Basilica of Sant'Apollinare Nuovo is architecturally quite simple. 3. These two simple letters capitulate the whole theme of the apse mosaic. The twelve lambs beside him represent all the faithful, and the garden around him is a microcosm of the whole creation that he and all the faithful offer in the Eucharist, and upon which the Holy Spirit descends and transforms. As the men were leaving Jesus, Peter said to him, Master, it is good for us to be here. Miracle of Loaves and Fishes (St. Apollinare Nuovo) top register; Christ in purple and gold, beardless; located in direct center to focus on majesty/divine nature . And then across from that, we can see the port city of Classe, which After he had communed with God and received the tablets of the law on Sinai, Moses had to leave the summit and descend back to the encamped Israelites. This makes the apse trinitarian, if one takes the gold background and the white to suggest the presence of the Holy Spirit. I so enjoyed reading this article and found it not only educational but spiritually moving. It's huge. The Lords command to Adam and Eve to fill the earth and subdue it (Genesis 1:28) needs to be understood in just this transformative sense. 504, Orthodox revisions ca. The Basilica of Sant'Apollinare Nuovo was included in the list of Italian World Heritage Sites by UNESCO in 1996. Christs parable of the lost sheep (Matthew 18:10-14) speaks of the shepherd leaving ninety-nine of his flock to find the one lost sheep. They are independent, each with boundaries according to their God-given responsibilities, but each also assisting the other to fulfil Gods purpose. Quite remarkably, close inspection of the little golden designs on Saint Apollinares chasuble reveals that they are in fact bees (see figure 13). Here is the wine, this is Date palms, symbols of paradise, fruitfulness and victory. In Christian art stars usually symbolize angels. But our mosaic gives no indication of such a mountain. this gift from your most holy Church. In fact it replaces the mountain with a garden, a paradise. The event is . The mosaic was made with thousands of little colored pieces of glass and put together. As we shall see, the mosaic unveils for us the cosmic significance of the Liturgy for which it is a setting. Shepherds with sheep and goats, apse mosaic, San Clemente, Rome, 1130s. 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