Larnaca tympanum
The Larnaca Tympanum is a medieval display of Christian art in the Victoria and Albert Museum in London , UK .
Image program
The pantocrator in the mandorla shown in the middle is surrounded by four adoring angels. On its sides the arched field shows the Annunciation, the baptism and the crucifixion of Jesus. In the lower field, Mary in an ornamental position forms the center, flanked by two angels and the twelve apostles.
history
The marble tympanum was excavated around 1882 by Alessandro Palma di Cesnola in Larnaka on Cyprus . With its size of 62.3 × 104.7 cm, it is probably too small to have originally been installed above the main portal of a church. It should have been above a side portal. The work of art combines Tuscan and Byzantine influences. The time of origin is controversial. While some art historians date the work to the period between 1210 and 1230, others suspect that it was made in the 15th or an imitation of the 19th century. The Victoria and Albert Museum follows the dating between 1210 and 1230.