|
In the 6th and 7th centuries the fabric of ancient Rome gradually decayed. Some ancient buildings were converted into churches, thus helping to preserve them: the hall of the City Prefect became Santi Cosma e Damiano. The apse mosaic of this church, commissioned by Felix IV, is the climax of early Christian art but also the starting point of Byzantine art. The decoration is still sensitive to Roman tradition, even if pictures and objects appear to be in a suspended atmosphere, almost in a dream.
An imposing figure of Christ, clad in a golden tunic and pallium, holds a scroll in his left hand and makes a rhetorical gesture with his right. He appears to hover on blue and pink clouds. Wearing a crown and raising his hand, he surveys the scene of paradise, as indicated by the two palm trees that close off the scene at the sides, and the river Jordan below.
On each side, Sts Cosmas and Damian, with crowns of martyrdom in their veiled hands, are presented to Christ by Sts Peter and Paul. The procession ends with Felix IV, who holds a model of the basilica, and St Theodore. Below is a procession of twelve lambs, representing the Apostles, leaving the cities of Jerusalem and Bethlehem and proceeding towards the mystic lamb, which stands on the mountain of paradise.
Rooted in local Roman tradition, this monumental depiction represents an expansion on the popular scene of the 'traditio legis' by adding the image of Sts Peter and Paul presenting the patron saints of the church to Christ.
|
