Floor-mosaic showing a church, labelled 'of Saint Stephen' (certainly the First Martyr, S00030). Found in a church at Kapropera/al-Bāra/el-Bāra in the territory of Apamea on the Orontes (central Syria). Probably mid-6th c.
E01651
Inscriptions - Formal inscriptions (stone, mosaic, etc.)
Images and objects - Wall paintings and mosaics
Fragmentarily preserved panel in the floor-mosaic of the north aisle of Church E.5 (or Church 4) at al-Bāra/el-Bāra - a richly decorated, three-aisled basilica, one of the latest churches built at the site in Late Antiquity (probably mid-6th c.). The mosaic is situated in front of the east entrance. Framed by a braid-like pattern.
The mosaic shows the south side of a church with apse, three aisles, including the nave with seven upper windows, and with four towers at the corners topped by conical roofs. The south wall is presented as a colonnade; between the columns there are three doors. The central door is closed; the right- and left-side doors are open, but partially covered by curtains.
The label is situated above the roof, between the two north towers:
τοῦ ἁγίου Στεφάνου
'Of Saint Stephen'
At the west end of the aisle, another preserved fragment of the mosaic bears the inscription:
ΑΤΟΝΟΥ
Text: Fourdrin 1992.
Cult building - independent (church)
Use of ImagesPublic display of an image
Source
First published by Jean-Pascal Fourdrin in 1992. There is no description of the dimensions of the mosaic.Discussion
The church shown in the mosaic as dedicated to Saint *Stephen differs from Church E.5 (Church 4), where the mosaic was found, therefore it may be another, still unidentified, sanctuary. But TIB 15 opts for an identification of the two churches.Bibliography
Edition:Fourdrin, J.-P., “Église E.5 d'El Bāra”, Syria 69 (1992), 171-210.
Further reading:
Tchalenko, G. (ed.), Villages antiques de la Syrie du Nord: Le Massif du Bélus a l'époque romaine, vol. 2 (Paris: P. Geuthner, 1953b), Abb. XII.5.
Burns, R., Monuments of Syria: An Historical Guide (London: I.B. Tauris, 1999), 58–59.
Strube, Ch., Baudekoration im Nordsyrischen Kalksteinmassiv, vol. 2: Das 6. und frühe 7. Jahrhundert (Mainz am Rhein: P. von Zabern, 2002), 41-47.
Reference works:
Chroniques d'épigraphie byzantine, 633.
Supplementum Epigraphicum Graecum 42, 1350.
TIB 15 – Tabula Imperii Byzantini 15, p. 1364.
Images
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Plan of the church, showing the location of mosaics; from: Fourdrin 1992.
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Fragment 1; from: Fourdrin 1992.
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Fragment 2; from: Fourdrin 1992.
Paweł Nowakowski
22/06/2016
| ID | Name | Name in Source | Identity | S00030 | Stephen, the First Martyr | Στέφανος | Certain |
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Please quote this record referring to its author, database name, number, and, if possible, stable URL:
Paweł Nowakowski, Cult of Saints, E01651 - http://csla.history.ox.ac.uk/record.php?recid=E01651