Early Christian Church Floor Mosaic with Lamb of God

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Early Christian Church Floor Mosaic with Lamb of God

Place of OriginLikely Syria

Date6th century CE

DimensionsH: 61 ¼ in. (155.6 cm); W: 53 in. (134.6 cm) (Auction house)

MediumMosaic, stone tesserae embedded in lime mortar

ClassificationArchitectural Elements

Credit LinePurchased with funds from the Libbey Endowment, Gift of Edward Drummond Libbey, by exchange

Object number

2008.122

On View

External Site Address (External address), On Loan

DescriptionA rectangular floor mosaic fragment depicting the Lamb of God standing before a draped altar under a baldacchino. The column shafts are decorated with colored marble revetment and surmounted by Corinthian capitals. Above the altar is a hanging lamp, and to the right stands a candlestick or incense burner.

Label TextThis Byzantine floor mosaic once adorned the sanctuary of an Early Christian church, likely in Syria. Dating to the 5th–6th century CE, it depicts the Lamb of God (Agnus Dei) standing before an altar, a reference to Christ’s sacrifice and resurrection (John 1:29, Revelation 5:1-14). The lamb, a powerful Christian symbol, continues the Jewish tradition of the Passover lamb and appears frequently in early church art. The mosaic’s architectural elements evoke the grandeur of Byzantine religious spaces. The altar is draped with a multicolored cloth, while a glass oil lamp hangs above, its flame illuminating the Eucharistic bread. Corinthian columns with colored marble revetment frame the scene, echoing contemporary imperial church designs in places like Ravenna and Jerusalem. This fragment was once part of a larger church pavement, visually reinforcing the sacred space where the Eucharist was performed. The mosaic’s stylistic features resemble those from church pavements found in Maarat al-Numan and Taybat al-Imam in Syria.Published References"Antiquities," Sotheby's, 8 June 2008, pp. 102-103, lot 71. Cf. Lawrence Becker and Christine Kondoleon, The Arts of Antioch: Art Historical and Scientific Approaches to Roman Mosaics and a Catalogue of the Worcester Art Museum Antioch Collection (Worcester, Mass.: Worcester Art Museum, 2005) on the fabrication, excavation, and conservation of ancient mosaic floors. Cf. Edward Bleiberg, Tree of Paradise: Jewish Mosaics from the Roman Empire (Brooklyn, NY: Brooklyn Museum, 2005). Cf. Kurt Weitzmann, ed., Age of Spirituality: Late Antique and Early Christian Art, Third to Seventh Century, Catalogue of the exhibition at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, November 19, 1977 through February 12, 1978 (New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, in association with Princeton University Press, 1979). Cf. Wladimiro Dorigo, Late Roman Painting (New York: Praeger Publishers, 1966). Cf. Wolfgang Fritz Volbach, Early Christian Art (New York: Harry N. Abrams, Inc., Publishers, 1961), pl. 173 (lambs in apse mosaics of Ravenna, Sant'Apollinare in Classe), pl. 183 (lambs on marble chancel of Archbishop Agnellus, 556-569), etc.