Archiepiscopal Museum, Ravenna

The Archiepiscopal Museum is a repository of early Christian relics from Ravenna, including fragments of mosaics from the first cathedral church and the chapel of Sant'Andrea, which dates back to the Gothic kingdom.

Upon entering the museum's main room, visitors encounter lapidary inscriptions, such as "Here lies in peace that eminent man Seda the Eunuch", who served as the 'Bedchamberlain' to Theodoric the Great and was buried in 541 AD. Adjacent to this inscription, near the window, there is a reliquary for the martyred saints Quiricus and Julietta. Their remains were transported from Tarsus, the birthplace of Saint Paul, to Auxerre and later to Ravenna.

A remarkable marble rosette on the facing wall serves as a Paschal calendar from the 6th century. Its purpose was to establish the date of the movable feast of Easter so that it could be celebrated simultaneously throughout Christendom. This was a challenging task because the Eastern and Western churches used different calendars, with the Eastern Church following the Hebrew lunar calendar and the Western Church adhering to the sun's cycle.

The museum features mosaics, which are fragments of what once adorned the apse of the first church. These mosaics date from the early 12th century, and while they are not original Roman works, they are of historical and artistic significance. The most well-preserved mosaic in this collection is that of the Madonna, shown in a prayerful pose in the Eastern tradition.

One of the museum's prized possessions is the Ivory Cathedra, which served as the bishop's seat during the Byzantine era in the 6th century. It is considered one of the finest examples of ivory carving in Western art. This exquisite piece is located in the tower of Porta Salustra, which was the Roman gateway guarding the southern entrance along the Cardis.

The museum also houses the private chapel of the bishop, constructed during the time of Theodoric at the end of the 5th century. This chapel is dedicated to Sant'Andrea (Saint Andrew) and features a central representation of the Word in the form of the initials of Christ. This symbolic feature reaffirms the Orthodox creed and signifies its continuity during a period when the Arians held dominance in Ravenna.