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)

86

APPENDIX

Position
Detail
Particulars
174
Alexios
COMNENOS
Shoulder-
piece
The gold background of the shoulder-piece is divided as in the vestment
of the Emperor John Comnenos into rectangular sections and is
bordered by jewelled bands of identical design and colours. The gold
tessellae are of two different kinds: for the right side of the shoulder-
piece are used greenish-gold tessellae of the nimbus, on other parts are
amber gold tessellae of the general background. The edge of the
shoulder-piece is adorned with pendants—pear-shaped and round
whitish stone tessellae. The contour of the shoulder-piece is made in
one row of large dark olive-brown tessellae.
175
Loros
Again the two kinds of gold tessellae are used for the loros and the
setting of the jewels. The amber gold of the general background is
used for the frames surrounding the jewels; all other parts of the loros
are in the greenish-gold of the nimbus. The square sections are drawn
by the same narrow bands of whitish stones on a gold background edged
with reddish-violet tessellae as on the shoulder-piece. At their intersections
are small square red jewels in a gold setting, without any claws. The
large rectangular jewels are made in two tones of glass tessellae, the
lighter being in the centre. Starting from the upper row and from right
to left they are: first row: green and blue; second row: blue and green;
in the next rows the jewels are in the same alternating sequence. A
small fragment of the transversal part of the loros remains. It has the
same design as the vertical part. A fragment of a jewel in a gold setting
is still visible. The edge of the loros is adorned with whitish stone
tessellae as pendants of the same pear-shaped stones as those on the
shoulder-piece.
176
Sceptre
Height from the cross surmounting the sceptre to its lower end, 1-03 m.
The stem is represented by a row of gold tessellae, and is shaded on
the left by a row of burnt-sealing-wax-red glass tessella. The upper
end of the cross is formed by four round whitish stone tessellae fixed
to a pear-shaped whitish stone set with the narrow end downwards.
At the left of the latter is a round whitish stone tessella; the one at the
right has fallen out. Lower down the sceptre is adorned with jewels
in gold settings made of small gold tessellae of the same hue as used in
the background of the mosaic. These gold settings are surrounded by
a row of burnt-sealing-wax-red glass tessellae. The jewels vary in
shape, form and colour. Starting from the top is an oval light green
jewel, next is a light blue oval one, below, the sceptre has been partly
damaged; lower down is an elongated light green jewel, next a lozenge-
shaped light blue one, below it an almost round green jewel and finally
a conical blue one fixed by its base to the stem. Two round whitish
stone tessellae are set between each pair of jewels, close to their red
setting. The end of the sceptre as well as of the adjacent area has been
damaged.
177
Inscription
The lettering is rendered in one row of large red opaque glass tessellae
followed on either side by a row of gold; the setting-bed under the
red tessellae was painted in blue, the mosaic inscription following
closely each stroke of blue paint.