Annotation 5 Evelyn Dean

Context The Empress holds her son on her lap front and center. I can’t help but point out that she and her son almost represent Mary and Jesus. This is likely intentional as a propaganda technique, associating the Empress with the mother of our lord and savior is pretty clever if you ask me. The piece depicts a triumph, a triumph of iconism against iconoclasm. Iconoclasm was the belief that there should be no icons in the church. They sought to destroy them. While it may seem that this makes them non religious, many of which simply meant to follow the ten commandments literally. They believed in worshipping the creator, not the created. The destruction of these icons however seemed incredibly blasphemous, as to many, it seemed like harming the physical form of religious figures. In the Charles Barber reading, he writes that the Byzantinian people were deeply passionate when they saw these icons, even noting that the viewers were seen weeping at, embracing, and speaking to them. This expectedly caused great conflict and division among the Byzantine empire and orthodox church. Empress Theodora ended the age of iconoclasm that came before her. Her triumph is celebrated to this day on the first Sunday of Lent. This piece shows the moment of the triumph, highlighting the empress as a very important figure.

Subject The subject is of Empress Theodora and her son overlooking the Triumph of Orthodoxy over iconoclasm. On either side of them are angels carrying their chariot and on their sides are other religious figures, saints and priests it seems. Below them is a group of men, several of which are holding icons in their hands, representing the defeat over iconoclasm. Almost as if they are rubbing it in the faces of anyone who were against icons. The men appear to be clapping. And With the empress on the chariot, the viewer can see how this depiction is the very moment icons triumphed.

Style The painting on wood of egg tempera with gold leaf. The paint is highly pigmented and the gold leaf highlights the divinity of the piece. A visual hierarchy is used to show the importance of the subjects. The Empress is center because it was her that ended iconoclasm, and the further away the other figures get from her, the lower their religious ranks. The empress is in front of the religious men around her, she is the primary subject and the special figure of this piece. However, each figure is equally detailed and each has been paid much attention to. The attention to detail was likely not only to pay tribute to each important figure depicted, but also shows that icons are not just pieces of art designed for aesthetic purposes, they are intentional and not meant to have background characters. The piece is rather small, barely over a foot on all its sides. It is incredibly detailed and involved as many icons are. Barber rights that icons not only encourage worship, they also motivate one to continue their worship.