Gervasius, early Christian martyr and joint patron saint of Milan. Byzantine mosaic in the Basilica di San Vitale at Ravenna, Emilia-Romagna, Italy. The mosaic was created in the 500s AD, a few years after Ravenna was captured by the Byzantine Empire from the Ostrogoths.
Ravenna, Emilia-Romagna, Italy: Gervasius or Gervase, Christian martyr and joint patron saint of Milan with his twin brother, Protasius or Protase, looks out from a 6th century AD circular mosaic medallion on the south lower underside of the triumphal arch dividing presbytery and apse in the Byzantine Basilica di San Vitale. The church, consecrated in 547 AD, is dedicated to their father Saint Vitalis, said to have been tortured on the rack and then buried alive by the Romans on the site of the basilica for urging St. Ursicinus of Ravenna to remain steadfast at his own execution. According to legend, the twins’ mother, St. Valeria, was killed either for burying other Christian martyrs or for refusing to take part in a sacrifice to Roman pagan gods. Protasius and Gervasius (here spelled Gerbasius) gave their possessions to the poor and lived devoutly until they too were martyred. In the 4th century, with the Roman Empire now officially Christian, Saint Ambrose, Bishop of Milan, discovered the twins’ bodies, re-interred them in a new basilica and made them joint patron saints of the city. The brothers share the underside of the triumphal arch with 13 other tondo mosaic medallions divided by pairs of dolphins. Christ looks down from the summit while saints Peter and Paul head the medallions on either side depicting the other 10 Apostles. Ravenna, on Italy’s northern Adriatic coast, was once the capital of the Western Roman Empire. It was captured by the Byzantine Empire from the Ostrogoths in 540 AD and the Basilica di San Vitale, begun under Ostrogothic control, was completed and decorated with mosaics over the next few years. Ravenna remained a Byzantine city into the 8th century AD. It is now a UNESCO World Heritage site, renowned as Western Europe’s greatest centre for the study of Byzantine art and architecture.
Size: 4148px × 2754px
Location: Basilica di San Vitale, Ravenna, Emilia-Romagna, Italy
Photo credit: © Terence Kerr / Alamy / Afripics
License: Royalty Free
Model Released: No
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