Our first small excursion with Bobs' sister was to Madaba. You can read about our first visit to the city of mosaics here, but there were a couple of things that we didn't get to see, and one of them are the Apostles Church.
Located in the south of the town, it's a bit away from the rest of the tourist attractions, but the mosaics are amazing and very well preserved. The original church was constructed in A.D 568; the first excavations were done in 1902 when the central piece, a medalion representing The Personification of the Sea was uncovered.
Inside view of the Church
This masterpiece was signed by Salamanios, as stated by the dedicatory inscription: O Lord God who has made the heavens and the earth, give life to Anastasius, to Thomas and Theodora. [This is the work] of Salamanios the mosaicist. It shows a woman emerging from the sea and is surrounded by mythicak sea creatures.
We were alone in the church so the guard allowed us in and we could walk around on the mosaics. We were very careful and he explained to us that we shouldn't walk on the borders, which are in a poor state and the small stone are at risk. This allowed us to get a good look at the different mosaics.
There are many scenes with wild animals
And many with birds as well, all the birds look a bit different
The Apostles Church is a must see in Madaba. Have a look at this link - you can see the whole church and have an overlook of the mosaics like you were there. All the mosaics have been renovated by the Mosaic School of Madaba - one of the things we have yet to see, but it is closed on fridays.
3 comments:
Have you read 'From the Holy Mountain' by William Dalrymple? It is so nice to see that there is an efford made to preserve churches in the region, rather than leaving them to rot. What a beautiful building!
nice pictures...you have captured it very well with detail description. Thnx
thx Paramita! and for the follow as well.
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