Built by angels, a photo from Larnaca, East

Photographer's Note

Panagia tis Angeloktistis (Greek: Παναγία της Αγγελόκτιστης) or Panagia Angeloktisti (Παναγία Αγγελόκτιστη, "Panagia Built by Angels") is a Byzantine church located in the village of Kiti, Cyprus, roughly 12 kilometers to the southwest of modern-day Larnaka and the ancient city Kition.The mosaic of Panagia tis Angeloktisti is one of the best preserved early Christian wall mosaics of Cyprus and was likely created in the late 6th century. The period of Justin II saw the expanded production of wall and floor mosaics, and Cyprus was no exception. In Kiti, the Virgin Mary holds in her left arm the Christ Child, in the Hodegetria style, and stands on stool in a manner that makes her appear almost as if she were standing in mid-air. On the Virgin’s right is the archangel Michael and on her left is the archangel Gabriel, and all are situated against a golden background. Both angels’ wings appear to be made from peacock feathers, which is a symbol of eternal life. The angels appear to hold a scepter and offer a globe with a cross at the apex, which symbolizes the offering of earthly domination to Christ and the Virgin.
Above the Virgin Mary is the phrase “HAGIA MARIA,” thereby naming her as Holy Mary or St. Mary instead of “ Theotokos ” (Mother of God). After the Council of Nicaea of 431 CE bestowed upon the Virgin Mary the title of St. Mary the name became increasingly commonly used instead of Theotokos.

When we came to Kiti so see this beautiful church, it was already near sunset. I have made some pictures inside and a few minutes later the preists came, turned off the lights and close the church. we were lucky!

Bigger beta picture

ikeharel, jhm, holmertz, ChrisJ, COSTANTINO, PaulVDV, mcmtanyel has marked this note useful

Critiques | Translate

jemaflor (147224) 2017-12-15 23:20

Hi Malgo,
Beautiful decoration for this ceiling, well presented, good symmetry and exposure management for your photo, very good effect with the golden tones, tfs.

jhm (211736) 2017-12-16 0:28

Hello Malgo,

A lovely artwork with fantastic colours, with a Ave-Maria
You create depth and perspective.
Composition and presentation are pleasant to look at.
Very well done, TFS.

Have a nice weekend,
John.

Nicou (193806) 2017-12-16 2:20

Hello

Des anges venu su ciel quelle iamge de cette resque il manque un petit bout mais c'est sueprbe quelle forme en arche et captage spelndide scène.
Bravo et amitié
Nciou

holmertz (102774) 2017-12-16 3:07

Hello Malgo,
The mosaic is beautiful, and I like its humble environment. Old churches or chapels like this, which may have seen better days, impress me much more than many luxurious and overdecorated cathedrals. You were lucky to get inside here before they closed and that there was enough light for this photo.
Kind regards,
Gert

Tue (92470) 2017-12-16 5:10

Hello Malgo,
Superb photo of this old church and the wonderful mosaic, which seems to have been preserved rather well in all these centuries. It stands out from the old grey stones. Good light management as well.
Lars

ChrisJ (171884) 2017-12-16 7:06

Hi Malgo,

A striking example of early Byzantine religious art, and reasonably well preserved considering its age. Your timing was perfect! Good sharpness and minimalist color. Tfs!

rychem (72187) 2017-12-16 8:40

Ciekawy fresk, w kazdej kulturze te same postaci z biblii sa przedstawiane inaczej, dobre zdjecie, bardzo pogladowe
pozdrawiam Ryszard

kasianowak (17676) 2017-12-16 12:35

Czesc Malgosiu
Rzeczywiscie mialas szczescie, zdazylas na ostatni moment, zeby zrobic to zdjecie.
Symetryczna kompozycja bardzo dobrze pasuje do tej architektury.
Pozdrawiam serdecznie
Kasia

carlo62 (81265) 2017-12-16 15:03

Ciao Malgo
mi sembra di vedere le figure di alcuni mosaici di Ravenna.
Anche se il sole stava scendendo, sei riuscita ad ottenere una buona esposizione.
Buona domenica
Carlo

PiotrF (54788) 2017-12-16 16:04

Czesc Malgo
Ladnie pokazana ta stara mozaika, ciekawa notatka.
Dobry kadr, ciekawa prezentacja tego miejsca
pozdrawiam
Piotr

COSTANTINO (116580) 2017-12-17 8:37

Hello dear Malgorzata and have a nice time
and a happy new day
excellent capture of Panagia Angeloktisti
your notes are really useful
lovely artwork with fantastic colors
very well composed
great depth and perspective
regards
Costantino

PaulVDV (62978) 2017-12-20 10:19

Hello Malgo,
A beautiful contrast between the rather rough stone interior and the highly refined wall mosaic in beautiful colours.
It is regrettable of the damage ... But after centuries this is not surprising.
Best regards, Paul

mcmtanyel (68623) 2017-12-22 20:31

Hello Malgo,
This depicts the remains of beautiful mosaics, so meaningful to look at just as we go into Christmas.
Merry Christmas,
MT
PS. I don't know how people transport decorated trees home. One guess is that Kraynak's offers van service. We always decorate our tree ourselves.

jmdias (115252) 2018-01-03 4:35

malgo

a precious golden mosaic, the drawing of the personages are well done and so beautiful contrasting with the ruinous environment around. nice job. TFS this treasure.

take care

jorge