Mosaic Glory
Christ Pantocrator, "Ruler
of All," gazes down in glory
from the ceiling of a dome in
the Church of the Holy
Savior in the Country (Chora
Church, now the Kariye
Museum) out by Istanbul's
western City
Walls.
Imagine the artistry of this Byzantine masterpiece!
The painstaking selection of
tiny bits of colored and gilded
glass, the subtle shading
of color in the eyes
and beard, the exquisite care
taken to set the pieces in the
mortar so they reflected the
light just right.
Many of Constantinople's churches
would have been similarly decorated,
but they did not survive the
ravages of time and decline as
did this small neighborhood church
in a distant neighborhood out
by the mighty walls.
When you travel to Turkey, if
you have at least three
days in Istanbul,
don't miss the splendid mosaics
and murals in the Kariye
Museum! |
