Saint John the Baptist appears athletic and imposing, though the
anatomy of his body appears more naïve and rigid compared to the
figures in the Neonian Baptistery.
His face is defined by large areas of dark tesserae, allowing his features
to emerge in a bold and graphic manner. His long hair, rendered with
stiffly arranged black tesserae, flows into a beard that tapers in two
pointed ends. The Baptist is clothed in a circularly spotted animal skin
and is barefoot – an allusion to his ascetic life in the desert.
Unlike the Neonian Baptistery, where he holds a precious astylar cross,
here he holds a simpler, gnarled cane.