This magnificent ivorty is the single largest piece of ivory to have survived from Byzantium and almost certainly represents an imperial comission. It depicts an archangel holding a secptre and an orb that he offers to a second figure, presumably an emperor, perhaps Justinian I, on the now lost left leaf of this suptych. The Greek inscription at the top probably reads, 'Receive this suppliant, despite his sinfulness'. Constantinople, About 525-550 CE (OA 9999)
aperture=f3.2 focal length: 60.0 mm exposure 1/100 sec ISO: 2000