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Plaque, dimensions: height: 45 cm, length: 138 cm, thickness: 19,5 cm.
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Plaque, Thisseion Collection
Area: Byzantine and Christian Museum, Athens
Date: 13th century
Description:
Marble plaque depicting Christ’s birth. The plaque has the shape of a rectangle, without a frame, and bears the representation of Christ’s birth in the centre. The scene is on a high-relief and has been carved on three stepped levels. Virgin Mary is depicted diagonally below and on the highest level of the relief. Her head is facing towards the spectator and she is lying on a bedding that follows her body’s curve. She is wearing a chiton and a maphorion. Her right hand is on her chest while her left one is on her face. A broad relief band forms her halo, whereas on the upper part of the bedding are shown the engraved letters which mean Mother of God. On the left side of the Virgin Mary – on a lower gradation of the marble and higher than Her – has been carved the Christ-Child in the crib, in its swaddling-clothes, in the same position and parallel to his mother, bearing a halo inscribed with a cross. On both sides of his head the letters IC XC are engraved. The crib is bordered by a triple, equal in width relief band, and is depicted in a schematic manner. On the angular frame of the surface are shown the heads of two animals, an ox and a donkey, which frame the Virgin Mary and the Christ-Child, and have been carved on the third level of the relief. The depth, which is worked with a needle, is in the lowest gradation of the marble. On the left upper side, on the smooth edge of the plaque an incised inscription reads "NATIVITY"”. The synthesis is lax, plain and economic in its lay-out. The characteristics of the faces are schematic but at the same time very expressive. Fatigue is vividly stamped on the face of the Virgin Mary. The movement of her left hand is equally expressive and indicates grief. The representation is iconographically and stylistically related to the representation of Birth in Parigoritissa in Arta (13th century) and refers to works of palaeologan art. Both the plaque of the Birth and the arches, which are provincial works of the same Athenian workshop and have a strong Frankish influence, in all probability come from the same monument. It comes from Athens and it was formerly part of the Thisseion Collection. It is dated to the thirteenth century A.D.
Date: 13th century
Description:
Marble plaque depicting Christ’s birth. The plaque has the shape of a rectangle, without a frame, and bears the representation of Christ’s birth in the centre. The scene is on a high-relief and has been carved on three stepped levels. Virgin Mary is depicted diagonally below and on the highest level of the relief. Her head is facing towards the spectator and she is lying on a bedding that follows her body’s curve. She is wearing a chiton and a maphorion. Her right hand is on her chest while her left one is on her face. A broad relief band forms her halo, whereas on the upper part of the bedding are shown the engraved letters which mean Mother of God. On the left side of the Virgin Mary – on a lower gradation of the marble and higher than Her – has been carved the Christ-Child in the crib, in its swaddling-clothes, in the same position and parallel to his mother, bearing a halo inscribed with a cross. On both sides of his head the letters IC XC are engraved. The crib is bordered by a triple, equal in width relief band, and is depicted in a schematic manner. On the angular frame of the surface are shown the heads of two animals, an ox and a donkey, which frame the Virgin Mary and the Christ-Child, and have been carved on the third level of the relief. The depth, which is worked with a needle, is in the lowest gradation of the marble. On the left upper side, on the smooth edge of the plaque an incised inscription reads "NATIVITY"”. The synthesis is lax, plain and economic in its lay-out. The characteristics of the faces are schematic but at the same time very expressive. Fatigue is vividly stamped on the face of the Virgin Mary. The movement of her left hand is equally expressive and indicates grief. The representation is iconographically and stylistically related to the representation of Birth in Parigoritissa in Arta (13th century) and refers to works of palaeologan art. Both the plaque of the Birth and the arches, which are provincial works of the same Athenian workshop and have a strong Frankish influence, in all probability come from the same monument. It comes from Athens and it was formerly part of the Thisseion Collection. It is dated to the thirteenth century A.D.