Byzantium in St. Louis

I had the opportunity to visit the splendidly decorated basilica in Saint Louis. The interior is almost entirely Byzantine and brought to mind memories of Saint Mark's in Venice, and even Hagia Sophia in Istanbul; that's how impressive it is. Incredibly, the St. Louis Basilica claims to house the world's largest collection of mosaic art. It's a bold claim, but they may be right. Shimmering mosaics encase a good part of the basilica's interior. Finely polished marble fills in the gaps in those few areas not boasting colorful pieces of carefully arranged cut glass or stone. The towering baldacchino in the sanctuary is a replica of the dome as seen from outside. The only part that is not Greek-influenced is the facade, which is Romanesque. I read that the reason is because, while Byzantine churches are an impressive sight to behold from the inside, their exteriors are usually less inspiring. Solution: Slap on a very imposing Romanesque facade. My only plaints are: One, that some of the mosaics in the St. Louis basilica look a little cartoonish, but there are only a couple of these. And second, and this is just my own scruple, some of the inscriptions in the mosaics are in English. It's not a big deal, but I prefer it when writings in churches are in Latin or Greek, especially taking into account the architectural style and history of the building. To me, it just looks strange to see these things written in English when Greek and Latin have such an irreplacable role in Church history.





A slightly out of kilter view of the dome