3.2.3 Third zone
Finally, in the third, final and lowest zone, a gathering of single saintly figures (male and female) are represented: martyrs, warrior saints, doctor saints, monks, hermits, stylites, etc. This gathering is usually placed at the congregation’s eye-level. The saints are there to both guide and protect the faithful, humans who are named after them, and to remind them that if they follow the Christian teaching then they, too, can end up in Paradise for eternity. A taste of this would be experienced every time they walk into church to attend the liturgy. This well-orchestrated religious stage was completed by the careful use of colour and light – a combination of windows that allowed the natural light to illuminate the decorated surfaces, as well as artificial lighting such as candles and oil lamps – and an array of smells and sounds provided by burning incense, chanting and bell ringing.
In addition to the important role held by the embellishment of the walls in Byzantine churches, either in mosaic or fresco (or occasionally a combination of the two), an equally important role is given to panel paintings placed on the templon or iconostasis, as well as on the proskynetaria (icon stands). A templon or iconostasis is a screen with doors, which separates the nave of an Orthodox church from the sanctuary or bema. They have two parts, the lower and the upper. The upper part usually has panel-painted icons, depicting the Dodekaorton, and in this case the chronological arrangement of the feasts is usually observed (Figure 7). Depending on the size of the church, the lower part of the templon can have either one door (in smaller churches) or three (in medium and larger churches, with one main door and two lateral).
