door. On
either side of the door, and on the piers at each end of the facade, are
slender flat niches, similar to those which occur in S. Mark's, Venice.
The finely carved capitals of the columns differ in type, the two
northern being a variant of the 'melon type,' the pair to the south
being Corinthian. They are probably old capitals re-used. Throughout
the building are traces of stones from some older building recut or
adapted to the present church. Between the columns is a breastwork of
carved marble slabs similar in style to those seen in S. Mark's and in
S. Fosca, Torcello.[424] The upper part of the facade does not
correspond to the composition below it, but follows the divisions of the
internal vaulting. It is in five circular-arched bays, each containing
an arched window. The infilling is of brick in various patterns. The
cornice looks Turkish. While the masonry of the lower portion of the
arcade is in alternate courses of one stone and two bricks, that of the
upper portion has alternate courses of one stone and three bricks.
Moreover, while the design of the upper portion is determined by the
vaulting of the narthex, the lower portion takes a more independent
line. These differences may indicate different periods of construction,
but we find a similar type of design in other Byzantine buildings, as,
for example, in the walls of the palace of the Porphyrogenitus, where
the different stories are distinct in design, and do not closely
correspond to one another. The outer narthex of S. Theodore may have
been built entirely at one time, or its upper story, vaults, and domes
may have been added to an already existing lower story. But in any case,
notwithstanding all possible adverse criticism, the total effect
produced by the facade is pleasing. It presents a noteworthy and
successful attempt to relieve the ordinary plainness and heaviness of a
Byzantine church exterior, and to give that exterior some grace and
beauty. The effect is the more impressive because the narthex is raised
considerably above the level of the ground and reached by a flight of
steps. 'Taking it altogether,' says Fergusson,[425] 'it is perhaps the
most complete and elegant church of its class now known to exist in or
near the capital, and many of its details are of great beauty and
perfection.'

[Illustration: PLATE LXXI.
S. THEODORE. THE CENTRAL DOME, FROM THE SOUTH.]

[Illustration: S. THEODORE. THE WESTERN FACADE, FROM THE SOUTH.