Young David is Introduced to King Saul

Constantinople, 628-630
Silver
Metropolitan Museum of Art

"David, brought before Saul, says he is willing to battle Goliath (1 Samuel 17:32–34). Saul is dressed as member of the Byzantine court. His chlamys, or cloak, worn over a long-sleeved tunic, is fastened with a cruciform fibula, or brooch, the sign of a high-ranking state official. The chlamys is adorned with a tablion, a rectangular embroidered panel indicating the wearer’s rank. The man at the far left wears the Persian costume fashionable at court during the early Byzantine period: short tunic with long sleeves, girdle, long trousers, and boots. Here again the arcade suggests a palatial setting." — from the museum's commentary on this plate.

This plate is part of a set displayed in the Byzantine Art gallery at the museum.

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Photographed at the museum by Richard Stracke, shared under Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike license.