Wednesday, January 25, 2006

Istanbul: Sultanahmet - Hagia Sophia - Mosaics


Hagia Sohpia. The mosaic in the lunette over the imperial doorway leading from the narthex to the naos (nave) shows Christ enthroned and on either side, enclosed within roundels, the busts of the Holy Virgin and the Archangel Gabriel.
To the left a crowned Emperor, commonly identified as Leo VI the Wise (886-912) is shown prostrate before Christ