I managed to take the shot below of Christ appearing to the disciples, but most of the faces have been obliterated. In the dome there are some wonderful scenes of buildings and peacocks.
In the Christian era the dome would probably have depicted Christ Pantocrator, but this is no longer visible – possibly removed when it was turned into a mosque.One of the few figures that can be made out is the head and tops of the wings of an archangel. Inside it is vast, with 6m thick walls and domed roof (originally with an opening or oculus in the centre) which is an impressive engineering achievement. It is one of the few intact Roman buildings in Greece. In the Christian area it was turned into a church (Agios Georgios) and later still a mosque after the city fell to the Turks in 1427 – a single minaret is still standing. It’s not clear whether it was intended to be a mausoleum for Galerius himself or as a Temple to Zeus. The Rotunda itself is a very impressive circular red brick structure built by Galerius in 306 AD. The Arch formed part of the road that connected the Palace of Galerius and the Rotunda. Dyrrachium was a Roman colony and opposite the Roman ports of Bari and Brindisi on the other side of the Adriatic. The central arch spanned the old Via Egnatia, the road built by the Romans in 2nd century BC to connect Dyrrachium (now the city of Durres in modern Albania) on the Adriatic coast to Byzantium. The pillars are decorated with friezes celebrating the victory. The Arch of Galerius was built in 298-299 AD to commemorate Galerius’s victory over the Persians and is in remarkable condition.
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