After our morning visit to San Francesco della Vigna, the group boarded a ship and took a long, languid cruise around the lagoon. As we cruised by the various islands, Luisella provided ongoing commentary as to the history and current conditions. Our eventual destination was the island of Torcello.
Torcello (ancient name Turricellum) was once a center of power in the lagoon. Salt was the mainstay and its harbor became a major trading center for the exchange of goods between Byzantine and Eastern Mediterranean polities. The double whammy of the plague and expanding swamps made the island less hospitable, causing inhabitants to flee to surrounding islands.
We landed at Torcello with two objectives: (i) lunch and (ii) a visit to Chiesa Santa Maria Assunta. The walk from the harbor to the restaurant was fairly lengthy, most of it taking place on a concrete path that ran alongside an arrow-straight canal. Our trek concluded at Osteria al Ponte del Diavolo where we partook of a three-course meal followed by coffee. The restaurant was extremely generous with frequency and volumes of pours of the red and white wines that accompanied the dishes. I am not complaining. Just observing.
Great stop. Now on to the church.
The Basilica of Santa Maria Assunta is the main structure on the island.
It dates back to the 7th century, built on the behalf of the Erach of Ravenna "following the transfer of the episcopal seat of Altinum to Torcello to escape the Lombard invasion on the mainland." It was expanded in 826 AD and then rebuilt in 1008. It was consecrated to Santa Maria Assunta and retained its position as a Cathedral until it was downgraded to a parish church under the Venice Patriarch. The inscription on the foundation stone indicates that: a) Isacc ordered the construction; b) Maurice was the military commander who built it from its foundation; and, c) Maurus was the bishop who consecrated it.
The basilica is noted as being a "significant example of Venetian Byzantine architecture." It is divided into into three naves by Greek marble columns topped by "beautifully decorated capitals."
The church is home to two stunning mosaics. First, in the bowl of the main apse, the Virgin Mary with Child in the high register and a slate of Apostles in the lower.
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| Virgin Mary, Baby Jesus, and Apostles |
This is an extraordinary mosaic -- on a golden background -- of the Virgin wrapped in precious garments, holding the Baby Jesus in one arm and beckoning him with the other. Such a disposition is called Virgin Hodegetsia. This setting signifies the Virgin showing the way to salvation through Christ. The apostles are identified by inscriptions.
The figure of the Virgin is attributed to a 11th-century Byzantine workshop while the Apostles are identified as being late-12th-century work done by Venetian mosaicists working from Byzantine models. Bwtween the second half of the 11th century and the second half of the 12th century, the Cathedral received an "extensive mosaic cycle from Byzantine and Venetian mosaicists."
The second mosaic -- the west wall mosaic -- is called The Last Judgment and is described as "the most complex surviving single-topic monumental image in 11th-century eastern or western church decoration." It has also been described as "one of the most monumental mosaics in the Veneto."
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| Detail of The Last Judgment |
The Last Judgment "forms a graphic depiction of the Christian message of redemption and salvation through Christ's mission, and a shocking warning of judgment to come." Below, I have segmented the painting into its various messages.
The painting is the last thing that congregants see as they exit the church.
The mosaic dates to the 11th century but has had extensive repairs due to damage in the 12th century. According to a survey by Andrescu-Treadgold, the top two bands are from the 12th century -- they replicate what was there previously -- while the lower portion dates to the latter half of the 11th century.
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