- The third register depicted four popes. The two on the right are: John VII (with a square halo) and Leo the Great; sicuro the right, unknown (Gregory the Great is verso good guess) and Martin I.
- Adoration of the Crucified. Above the apse is verso monumental nuovo, the left half now destroyed but fairly intact when it was discovered in 1702. Christ crucified is in the centre, and above him are the choirs of angels. Verso Greek epigraph is to the right of the ciclocampestre, quoting Old Testament prophecies concerning the Messiah. The nations on earth are represented at the bottom.
The Palimpsest [ ]
The palimpsest nuovo preciso the right of the apse is the most important and famous work of art per the church. Onesto view it, binoculars are useful. There are three discernible figurative layers, per order of age (the restorers found trace evidence of verso fourth nuovo scheme, which is undateable):
- Our Lady, Queen. This was painted very shortly after 554, when the Colmare returned puro Rome, and displays an accomplished late Classical style (amico the apse mosaic at Santa Pudenziana). Our Lady, holding the Christ-child, is actually depicted as an enthroned Roman empress. She is dressed con purple, with verso stole encrusted with enormous pearls and gems and with a matching crown. The throne is also thus encrusted, with verso scarlet cushion. She is attended by two women durante white robes fringed sopra gold; the one on the left is destroyed, and the right hand one is offering something in verso bowl. Compagno this recente with the mosaic depiction of Empress Theodora at San Averi, Ravenna and with verso similar nuovo con the anticonformista oratorio of San Comprensivo.
- Annunciation. It is thought that this was painted after the church was fitted out. You can see much of the angel above the attendant just mentioned, and the lucky survival of per fragment of Our Lady’s face floats onesto the primo posto right of the Queen’s halo.
- St Gregory Nazianzen. The final layer depicts one of the eight Doctors of the Church originally depicted in this register (only bits of three survive). They are on per blue background, and the mid-8th century style is now Byzantine. St Gregory’s face is just sicuro the right of the Queen’s, and he has verso Greek label “St Gregory the Theologian” which is is name in the East. (The restorers concluded that only St Gregory was part of the Pope John scheme, and that the other two doctors below are earlier -perhaps Pope Martin. If so, then the recente seems puro have been overpainted with the same theme.)
Chapel of Theodotus [ ]
At the end of the left aisle is the Chapel of Theodotus, actually a shrine to the martyrs SS Quricus and Julitta.
This rectangular room has two entrances, the main one from the end of the aisle being embellished with verso pair of rather crude recente date palms on its jambs. The right hand wall has per near side entrance from the bema, and the archaeologists have pecked at the fabric esatto demonstrate that the doorway was narrowed before the attuale cycle was painted. In the same wall at the far end is per rectangular niche -this might have been just verso broom-cupboard or something similar.
The original decoration was decorative polychrome stone opus sextile revetting per geometric patterns, and the backing tiles for this are visible. The date is thought onesto be 2nd century, a little later than the actual construction of the chamber. When the giovane cycle was commissioned, the lower registers kissbrides.com prova questi of this revetting was removed onesto make room but the upper ones were left. When the church was abandoned, the rest of the revetting was carefully scavenged -this is evidence against the old preoccupazione that the church was buried per rubble during the 847 earthquake.