Famagusta City Walls, Sea Gate / FAM_CW_01

The external façade of the Sea Gate is composed of an archway built on two squared pillars and a triangular-shaped pediment crowning an attic made with slabs of different marbles and the limestone relief of the lion of Saint Mark holding an open book with the motto of the Venetian Republic inscribed on it (inscription I). The main epigraphic text (inscription II) is channelled on the entablature of the archway within a rectangular moulded frame. In the spandrels of the arch the coat of arms of the Priuli Venetian family is visible. The whole monument resembles the Porta dell’Arsenale in Venice (1460), but displays a simpler structure compared to it (see Papacostas 2010).

The lion, in high relief, is represented in the walking type, with its head in a frontal position and its body turned to left. With its right anterior paw, with well-defined claws, the lion holds the open book with the motto of the Venetian Republic inscribed on it; the rear paws lean on a chain motif, which runs horizontally on the lower margin of the relief and stands for the sea waves. The lion’s head has half-closed jaws, with visible tusks, and a flowing mane with wave-shaped locks covering also the animal’s chest. The slim body is characterised by fur on the belly and on the left anterior paw and by a lowered tail. The relief of the lion is a high-quality product created by well-trained craftsmen. It is in good state of preservation with damages only on the wings of the lion, now almost completely missing, and on some parts of the open pages of the book. Also some parts of the cornice of the pediment are missing, together with small pieces of the marble slabs.

The epigraphic text incised on the book (I) is not perfectly distributed on the surface; in fact, the last letter, an S, is visible along the external edge of the page. The main inscription (II) is carved in Humanistic Capital. Within the incised characters of the latter text several holes are visible; therefore, the letters had originally to be filled in with metals, now lost. The words of this inscription are separated through spaces and the text is accurately arranged on the surface. The use of the word prefectus to refer to the captain of the island testifies the desire to recall classical models.