The Komnenos Family Manuscript

As part of my series of recreating Byzantine era manuscripts, for this one I chose to recreate one depicting the emperor Alexios I Komnenos (r. 1081-1118) seen together with his wife Empress Irene Doukaina and their young son John II Komnenos who was crowned as his father's co-emperor in 1092. In addition, the manuscript shows angels crowning the imperial couple and their son with Christ enthroned above them.
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Alexios I came to rule the Byzantine Empire at a chaotic time in 1081 but died in 1118 leaving it in a much stronger and more stable position than he had founded it. Although Alexios intended that his eldest son John should succeed him as emperor to ensure a stable dynasty as John did in fact have sons of his own, Alexios' wife Empress Irene objected to it preferring that their eldest child which was their daughter the historian Anna Komnene should succeed him instead together with her husband the general and Caesar Nikephoros Bryennios. On his deathbed, Alexios I was able to prevent his wife from getting it her way by having John come to him and take his ring and in the following morning, John II was crowned. When discovering his sister Anna and her husband were behind a plot to overthrow him a year later, John II simply banished them to a monastery while Anna's property was confiscated and handed over to John's general and closest friend the Byzantine raised Turk John Axouch. For his mother Irene, she was devastated about the fact that John who she distrusted came to power, thus she removed herself from public life thinking John would be a terrible emperor, however John II would prove to be the opposite.
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© Powee Celdran, 2021.