The church of Hosios David is a late, fifth century Byzantine church that was formerly the primary monastic church (or 'katholikon') of the Latomos Monastery. The church was originally built in the Byzantine 'cross in square' plan and, as such, it is one of the earliest instances of this type of church -- a form of ecclesiastical architecture which would become so very iconic within the Byzantine East. Regrettably the church is no longer in its original form due to damages suffered from earthquakes in the region. However, we are fortunate that what wasn't lost to us is the splendid and important apsidal mosaic we now know as the "Icon of Christ of Latomos."
Both the church and the apsidal mosaic have a rather interesting tradition attached to it. Here is how The Byzantine Legacy summarizes the legend:
According to tradition, the church was founded by Theodora, the daughter of the emperor Maximianus. She supposedly founded the church as a bathhouse and concealed its mosaic to dispel her mother's suspicions of her conversion to Christianity. The mosaic was probably concealed during the period of the iconoclastic controversy. The mosaic was said to have been discovered in 9th century, during the course of an earthquake, when the oxhide fell and revealed the mosaic before the eyes of a monk.
The monk in question was apparently named "Senouphios" The tradition suggest that the mosaic was miraculously made, having been discovered by Theodora before being concealed by her in order to protect it from destruction by pagan Roman authorities.
To my mind, however, the theory that this mosaic was more than likely simply concealed during the iconoclastic era in order to protect it from destruction by the iconoclasts, then forgotten before finally being rediscovered again, certainly seems the more likely explanation to me. Whatever the case, the key point is that the mosaic has been preserved for aside from its general beauty, by virtue of its antiquity and style it is also considered one of the most important examples of early Byzantine Christian art; an example that showcases the naturalistic realism that characterized this proto-Byzantine, more classically derived style.
The mosaic is characterized by its central image which showns us a youthful, un-bearded Christ. Christ is shown sitting upon a rainbow coloured arch (a symbol of Heaven), His one hand raised and the other holds a scroll written in Greek which reads: "Behold our God in whom we hope and rejoice in our salvation, he will give rest to this house."
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| Observe the realism in the face and features, making this mosaic more akin to those found in the Roman and Greek classical world. |
Also visible within the mosaic are the Four Rivers of Paradise which flow beneath the feet of Christ. Within the waters a face is also observable which is thought to be a symbolic personification of the River, akin to similar sorts of personifications that can be found within classical art.
Around Christ emanates the radiant light of glory, and around this in turn are the symbols of the four Gospel writers, Matthew, Mark, Luke and John.
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| The ox, symbol of St. Luke |
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| The lion, symbol of St. Mark |
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| The angel, symbol of St. Matthew |
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| The eagle, symbol of St. John |
Finally, to either side are two figures who are thought to be Old Testament prophets Ezekiel and Habakkuk. The reason for this hypothesis is that these prophets both had divine visions which thus makes them an apropos choice given the central imagery of a vision of Christ in Glory.
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| The Prophet Ezekiel |
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| The Prophet Habakkuk |
Beyond this, what is particularly noteworthy for me in this mosaic are two things:
The first is that it shows how far back into antiquity these familiar Christian symbols, like those associated with the Four Evangelists, reach. The second is that it shows us form of Byzantine art that might even be considered "proto-Byzantine"; one that is more rooted in the naturalistic style of the classical age. It is 'Byzantine' art before it developed and became what we tend to think of when we think of Byzantine iconography.
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