The apse mosaic of the destroyed Dormition Church in Nicaea was conceptually constructed around the figure of Mary standing upright with the Christ Child at her bosom.
Black and white photographs taken not long before the destruction of the monument in 1922 reveal that the mosaic was reworked on several occasions. Traces visible around the figure of the Virgin indicate that it replaced an earlier mosaic representing the cross, perhaps an iconoclastic modification of the original design.
Directly above the Mother of God a large semicircular section of the mosaic alluded to the heavenly realm. It was characterized by three bands rendered in different shades of blue. From within this sky a right hand—the Hand of God—pointed in the direction of the Mother of God. The idea of divine presence would have been reinforced with the help of inlaid rays of blue light emanating from the sky and penetrating the golden surface of the apse.
At the top of the sanctuary space, there was a mosaic image of the Hetoimasia: the throne prepared for the Second Coming of the Lord.
The meaning and theological message of the entire triumphant scene unfolding before the eyes of the beholder was made explicit with the help of inscriptions. Inscribed in Greek in a semicircle below the representation of the heavens was a slightly-paraphrased line from Psalm 110:3: ‘I begat Thee in the womb before the Morning Star’. The theophanic vision of the Incarnation in the apse was linked to the Old Testament promise that God was the source of life and future salvation.
By creating a complex symbiosis between the text of the psalm and the image, the authors of this decorative scene provided a visual commentary which enriched earlier interpretations of the psalm with Christological associations, and read it as a quintessential statement about the mystery of Incarnation.
References
Barber, Charles. 2005. ‘Theotokos and “Logos”: The Interpretation and Reinterpretation of the Sanctuary Programme of the Koimesis Church, Nicaea’, in Images of the Mother of God: Perceptions of the Theotokos in Byzantium, ed. by Maria Vassilaki (Aldershot: Ashgate), pp.43–60
Underwood, Paul. A. 1959. ‘The Evidence of Restorations in the Sanctuary Mosaics of the Church of the Dormition at Nicaea’, Dumbarton Oaks Papers, 13: 235–43
Unknown Byzantine artist
The Virgin and Child, destroyed apse mosaic from The Church of the Dormition, Nicaea, 8th Century, Mosaic, Destroyed, The Church of the Dormition, Nicaea; Photograph from the Archive of the Oriental Department, The State Hermitage Museum; Photo © State Hermitage Museum, St. Petersburg
‘The Womb of the Morning’
The apse mosaic of the destroyed Dormition Church in Nicaea was conceptually constructed around the figure of Mary standing upright with the Christ Child at her bosom.
Black and white photographs taken not long before the destruction of the monument in 1922 reveal that the mosaic was reworked on several occasions. Traces visible around the figure of the Virgin indicate that it replaced an earlier mosaic representing the cross, perhaps an iconoclastic modification of the original design.
Directly above the Mother of God a large semicircular section of the mosaic alluded to the heavenly realm. It was characterized by three bands rendered in different shades of blue. From within this sky a right hand—the Hand of God—pointed in the direction of the Mother of God. The idea of divine presence would have been reinforced with the help of inlaid rays of blue light emanating from the sky and penetrating the golden surface of the apse.
At the top of the sanctuary space, there was a mosaic image of the Hetoimasia: the throne prepared for the Second Coming of the Lord.
The meaning and theological message of the entire triumphant scene unfolding before the eyes of the beholder was made explicit with the help of inscriptions. Inscribed in Greek in a semicircle below the representation of the heavens was a slightly-paraphrased line from Psalm 110:3: ‘I begat Thee in the womb before the Morning Star’. The theophanic vision of the Incarnation in the apse was linked to the Old Testament promise that God was the source of life and future salvation.
By creating a complex symbiosis between the text of the psalm and the image, the authors of this decorative scene provided a visual commentary which enriched earlier interpretations of the psalm with Christological associations, and read it as a quintessential statement about the mystery of Incarnation.
References
Barber, Charles. 2005. ‘Theotokos and “Logos”: The Interpretation and Reinterpretation of the Sanctuary Programme of the Koimesis Church, Nicaea’, in Images of the Mother of God: Perceptions of the Theotokos in Byzantium, ed. by Maria Vassilaki (Aldershot: Ashgate), pp.43–60
Underwood, Paul. A. 1959. ‘The Evidence of Restorations in the Sanctuary Mosaics of the Church of the Dormition at Nicaea’, Dumbarton Oaks Papers, 13: 235–43
Psalm 110
Revised Standard Version
A Psalm of David.
110 The Lord says to my lord:
“Sit at my right hand,
till I make your enemies your footstool.”
2The Lord sends forth from Zion
your mighty scepter.
Rule in the midst of your foes!
3Your people will offer themselves freely
on the day you lead your host
upon the holy mountains.
From the womb of the morning
like dew your youth will come to you.
4The Lord has sworn
and will not change his mind,
“You are a priest for ever
after the order of Melchizʹedek.”
5The Lord is at your right hand;
he will shatter kings on the day of his wrath.
6He will execute judgment among the nations,
filling them with corpses;
he will shatter chiefs
over the wide earth.
7He will drink from the brook by the way;
therefore he will lift up his head.
More Exhibitions
Redeeming the ‘Sinful Woman’
Luke 7:36–50
Making Room for Care and Creativity
2 Kings 4:8–37
Samson and Delilah
Judges 16:1–22