Last Judgement

At the top is Christ on the Cross flanked by the Virgin Mary and St John the Evangelist. Below is the Descent into Limbo (or the Harrowing of Hell), in which Christ sets free Adam, whose wrist he seizes, Eve and others, including King Solomon and King David.

At a lower level is Christ in Glory between the Virgin and St John the Baptist, with ranks of saints and apostles to either side. Beneath this we see the angels waking the dead with their trumpets.

The lowest register depicts a number of scenes: in the centre is the Virgin Orans with the Archangel Michael and the Devil weighing souls. To the left are the Blessed in Paradise. In a garden below is Abraham receiving the souls of the saved. He is accompanied by the Madonna, the Good Thief and Saint Peter. To the right are the damned amidst various gruesome scenes from Hell.

The monumental mosaic on the counter-facade depicts the Last Judgement, the end of human time. It dates from the late 11th century, but the three upper registers were heavily restored in the 19th century.

This mosaic is in the ancient cathedral of Santa Maria Assunta, the oldest building in the Venetian lagoon,  and famous for its mediaeval mosaics.  has survived. 

This mosaic is linked to Matthew 25:31-46 - 31 “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne. 32 Before him will be gathered all the nations, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. 33 And he will place the sheep on his right, but the goats on the left...."