Art And Architecture 363
Orthodox Baptistery in Ravenna.41 A new feature in baptistery design appears
here for the first time: an exterior ambulatory that wraps around the inner core
and provided a space for moving people through the phases of the baptismal
ceremony.42 The octagonal core rose above the ambulatory, allowing a window
on each side to illuminate the interior. The dome, like the vault of the cathe-
dral’s apse, was built of brick rather than the tubi fittili used in other domes in
the city.43 The interior of the baptistery has a floor level much higher than its
original one. Excavations under it demonstrated the presence of a font near
the centre of the space and uncovered numerous fragments of stucco sculp-
ture as well as mosaic tesserae that formed the decoration of the walls.
Only the mosaics in the dome remain therefore intact and its programme
was obviously based on that of the Orthodox Baptistery, modified because of
its smaller size (Figure 14.10). The Baptism of Christ is depicted in the central
medallion: a nude and beardless Christ stands in the water flanked by John
the Baptist and the river god of the Jordan, personifying the place in which
41 Fabbi, “Tipologie”.
42 Pellini, “Complesso episcopale”, pp. 116–17.
43 Deliayannis, Ravenna, p. 180.
FIGURE 14.9 Plan of Santo Spirito, Ravenna
Plan by Mark Johnson