Reconsidering the Lost Mosaic of the Apostle’s Communion of the Old Metropolis of Serres

The paper concerns a case study of remarkable artistic quality, which lends itself to new reflections on various aspects, including methodological ones. It is the lost apse mosaic of the ancient Metropolitan Church of Serres, in Central Macedonia, of which only a very few fragments remain, preserved in the city’s Archaeological Museum. The work was almost completely destroyed primarily due to two large fires that devastated the basilica in 1849 and 1913, but it had fortunately been captured in several photographs, which show that it depicted a monumental and exquisite scene of the Communion of the Apostles. Taking into account the studies already dedicated to the topic (Strate 1985-1986; Kalavrezou 2013), this paper intends to propose a comparative reading of the still-preserved mosaic fragments and the historical photographs in light of the advancements on the spatial and cultural context in which the mosaic decoration was situated. Indeed, the importance of certain iconographic details of the depiction will be re-discussed in relation to the further knowledge that has emerged in recent decades regarding the various cases compared in scholarly literature with that of the Macedonian Metropolitan Church. Furthermore, the study of the significance of such a representation in the most important sacred building of Serres will be deepened, at the cusp between the late 11th and early 12th centuries, when the city was establishing itself as the major cult center in the Balkan area for Saints Theodore Teron and Stratelates, to whom the cathedral was dedicated.