MOSAIC ARTIST, Italian
(active 1145-60 in Cefalù)

South wall of the choir

1145-60
Mosaic
Cathedral, Cefalù

The pictorial program in the bay in front of the apse consists of single figures, with no scenic depictions. The side walls present figures from the Old Testament, sainted deacons and warriors and Latin and Greek teachers of the church arrayed across from each other in an asymmetrical arrangement dictated by the irregular placement of the windows.

In the upper lunette of the south wall Abraham is featured as half-figure in round medallion. Beneath Abraham are the kings David and Solomon. In the second register are the prophets Jonah, Micah, and Nahum, while in the third register are the soldier saints Theodore, George, Demetrius, and Nestor. In the fourth (bottom) register Sts Nicholas, Basilius, John Chrysostom, and Gregory of Nazianz are represented.