The Deesis in Hagia Sophia (Istanbul, Turkey)

Deesis (Christ Pantocrator) Mosaic in Hagia Sophia

In Byzantine art, the Deesis is a traditional representation of Christ enthroned, flanked by Mary and St. John the Baptist; these two figures are appealing to Christ for mercy on behalf of the beholder (viewer) on Judgment Day.

In Istanbul’s Hagia Sophia, visitors to the south gallery (upstairs) can find a fantastic mosaic image of the Deesis.  Made in the late 13th century (possibly 1261), this is the highest detail mosaic in the church and one of the most impressive mosaics in the world.

The “Byzantine style” is typically associated with flat two-dimensional, symbolic figuration, emphasized by stylized coloration with golds and blues (after all, the Christians pioneered this style as a rejection of the three-dimensional, naturalistic pagan designs of the Greeks and Romans).  However, this mosaic demonstrates the the “Byzantine Style” was anything but a consistent one; further, there was no evolution in one direction, per se, but rather an ongoing ebb-and-flow, back-and-forth from stylized to naturalistic.

The Hagia Sophia Deesis symbolizes the start of the re-emergence of a highly realistic style (albeit with stylized coloration, a characteristic that would never fade) pioneered during the post-Fourth Crusade, Palaeologan Era (1261-1453).  Although the Byzantine Empire was shaky politically and financially during this period (it had only two hundred years before its fall to the Ottoman Turks), Byzantine mosaic art arguably reaches its apex.

Learn more about the mosaics in Hagia Sophia and the Mediterranean
Check out our PDF travel guides to Istanbul:

Hagia Sophia and its Architectural Legacy, a detailed travel guide to Hagia Sophia

Ancient Mediterranean Mosaics, which offers an overview of the art of mosaics in Istanbul, Italy and the Middle East.