Emperor Justinian And His Attendants.
This is a mosaic of Emperor Justinian found on the North Sanctuary wall of the Church of San Vitale, in Ravenna Italy. Emperor Justinian was traditionally known as Justinian the Great and Saint Justinian in the Orthodox Catholic Church. He was the Byzantine Emperor from 527-565. In the mosaic, Justinian is in the center wearing purple, a color with is associated with the throne. He is surrounded by individuals from his court as well as religious figures and soldiers. Including these people in the mosa
ic represent the three centers of court: the military, the emperor, and the church. There is a halo around his head to symbolize that his authority is divine. Justinian is carrying a bowl which carried bread and is associated with the eucharist and is in the process of being handed to christ. All of the figures are frontal and there seems no concern for accurate proportion.
Next to Justinian is the Bishop Maximan and clergyman. Maximan olds a jeweled cross and wears the same purple as Justinian to symbolize power. One of the clergyman holds a jeweled book of the gospel and the other holds an incent burner. The image seems to suggest that the Emperor is leading the procession for the sacrement of the eucharist.
Empress Theodora And Her Attendants
this mosaic is of Empress Theodora. She was 
the Empress of the Byzantine Empire and the wife of Justinian. She was one of the most influential and powerful of the Byzantine Empresses. There was the idea that her and Justinian ruled as co-equals. She wears an elaborate clothing and headers with many jewels. Like the mosaic of Justinian, she has a halo around her head to symbolize the divine origin of her authority.She is surrounded by attendants which symbolize the imperial court. she carries the chalice for the eucharist. The curtain is raised as if the ceremony is about to start.
The two mosaics of the Emperor and the Empress are very similar in many ways. The way the bodies stand and the way they seem like they are floating andy highly stylized is seem in both mosaics and is typical of Byzantine art. The gold in the background and the halos around the Emperor and Empress is the same in both mosaics. They are both participating in the eucharist, each holding a different part, the bowl and the chalice. The main difference between the two mosaics is the power represented in each mosaic. As mentioned before, the Emperor hold the three main powers in his mosaic, the empire, the military, and the church. The empress on the other hand only has the power of the court, although in reports, she pulled just as much as the Emperor.
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