L’abito di sant’Agnese. Analisi delle vesti bizantine nell’iconografia delle martiri romane

The mosaic in the apse of Sant’Agnese Fuori le Mura (7th century) shows us the titular saint dressed as a Constantinopolitan empress. It is one of the first examples of a martyr saint defined through the use of imperial fashion, usually reserved for Christ and the Virgin. The precious dress not only underlines the importance of the saint herself but also suggests the role that this type of vestments had within the visual imagery of the time. Sant’Agnese is just one of the various examples of aristocratic clothes used over the centuries to emphasize the holiness of the subject represented, including Santa Maria Antiqua, Santa Maria Maggiore, Santa Prassede, Santa Cecilia in Trastevere, San Marco Evangelista and Santa Maria in Trastevere. In these examples it is clear how the different clients made precise iconographic choices regarding the costume of the saints, this is useful for understanding the historical and artistic context in which they were made. It is also possible to make a series of considerations that unite the theological aspect to the history of fashion, investigating their role within the religious context, what importance did luxury goods have in the society of the time and what symbolic and social meaning they assumed.