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.