Saint Agnes and Pope Honorius and Symmachus

Basilica of Saint Agnes outside the Walls

This decorates the apse and is the oldest work in the Basilica. The three figures are placed on a gold background without the slightest characterizaton, giving the whole piece a strong sense of the immaterial, a regular aspect of byzantine art of the time. Above is the hand of the Holy Father, on the side, the Saint Pope Honorius, who commissioned the work, offering a model of the church to Saint Agnes for whom the church was named, while on the right, Pope Symmachus who rebuilt the church in Sixth Century, holds a book.