Whittemore, Thomas [Editor]; Byzantine Institute of America [Contr.]: The mosaics of Haghia Sophia at Istanbul: preliminary report (3rd preliminary report): The imperial portraits of the south gallery: work done in 1935 and 1938 (Oxford: printed by John Johnson at the Oxford University Press for the Byzantine Institute, 1942)

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APPENDIX

Position
Detail
Particulars
Zoe
Loros
from the border at each side by a line of deep red tessellae. Below the
border of the shoulder-piece are two round jewels in two tones of
green, surrounded first by a concentric line of gold, then by a line of
deep red, and, in part, by an outer concentric circle of gold. In the
centre of the loros below the round jewels is a square one of green, set
on its diagonal and similarly framed. Opposite the centre of each face
of it is a pear-shaped red jewel in three tones, the centre of rose marble,
the next line of burnt-sealing-wax-red, the outline of deep red glass
tessellae. Whitish stones surrounded by single lines of bluish-violet
represent pearls and are informally arranged about the larger ornaments
on the gold ground. The gold cubes are set with unusual irregularity.
A fragment of the outer narrow band of the loros is seen, on her right,
below the scroll, showing its dark ground with three whitish stones. Of
the centre band only the single row of red and a number of tessellae
of the gold ground remain. A triangular portion of the border of the
loros appears from behind the ‘thorakion’ at the lower broken edge of
the mosaic, showing a rectangular ornament, similar to those in the
border of the loros above, indicated on the setting-bed in red. Indications
of three whitish stones appear above the ornament in the painted pre-
paration of the dark reddish-violet ground. Below, two whitish stones of
the border remain and several tessellae of the dark reddish-violet ground.
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Girdle
Only a few silver tessellae at the left side end of the girdle remain. They are
outlined by a single row of dark reddish-violet, of which six tessellae are
also visible at the broken edge below the left hand. On the setting-bed
are clear traces of a round red ornament (the buckle ?) beneath the hand.
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Thorakion
Only three separate fragments retain tessellae, but almost the complete
vestment is preserved in the painting of the setting-bed. The thorakion
is outlined on her right by the shade of the turn of the vestment shown
in two rows of brownish-grey tessellae inside which are two rows of
yellowish-grey. The top is hidden by the girdle and the under-edge
of the left sleeve. The setting-bed of the border of the thorakion, from
the left sleeve to the remaining tessellae at the broken edge of the panel
shows four square jewels in two tones, separated by groups of ten white
stones in double rows on a dark reddish-violet background. The jewels
are indicated alternating from above in red and green paint. However,
as the lowest jewel painted on the setting-bed in green has preserved two
red tessellae, we can assume that the alternation of the colours in the
mosaic itself was in this case the reverse of the colours of the setting-
bed, the mosaicist in the course of setting having changed the order of
colours.
The jewels and the groups of stones are surrounded by gold. One line
of red separates the border from the ground of the thorakion.
As shown by the preserved fragments, the ground of the thorakion was
of gold tessellae.
Remaining only in the setting-bed in the centre of the thorakion is the
design of a jewelled cross of unequal arms in deep reddish-blue, five
tessellae of which are still in position at the tip of the cross limb on her
right. The jewel at the intersection of the limbs is indicated in red paint.
Indications in the vertical limb above show one green jewel separated
from the red by a group of five pairs of whitish stones, and from the
upper tip of the limb by four pairs.
Below the intersection a jewel indicated in green is separated from the
red jewel above by six pairs of whitish stones.