The procession of the blessed women is led by the Three Kings who,
kneeling in the rite of proskynesis – typical of Byzantine courts and
reserved to emperors – pay homage to the enthroned Virgin with the
child. The blessing Virgin wears the maphorion and a purple mantle.
She holds the infant Christ on her knees, seated on a throne richly
decorated with pearls and precious gems, with her feet resting on
a suppedaneum. This precious and regal representation of Mary as
Theotokos, Mother of Jesus, originated in Constantinople.
It spread from the East throughout the Mediterranean, mainly through
the circulation of diptychs, icons and silverware. A coeval mosaic from
the 6th century can be seen today in the apse of the Euphrasian Basilica
in Poreč, Croatia