The Byzantine church Basilica of San Vitale is located in Ravenna, Italy.
Ravenna became a major center of late Roman and Byzantine culture because of its political importance in Italy. It served as the capital of the Western Roman Empire from 402, later became the capital of the Ostrogothic Kingdom, and was captured by the Byzantine Empire in 540 during Justinian’s wars.
San Vitale was completed during this period and preserves some of the best-known sixth-century mosaics in the world. Its Justinian and Theodora panels connect Ravenna directly with the imperial court in Constantinople, even though the city lies on the Adriatic coast of Italy.
Ravenna’s monuments are often discussed together because several preserve major late antique mosaics. UNESCO inscribed its early Christian monuments as a World Heritage Site in 1996. San Vitale is therefore both a Byzantine architectural landmark and part of a wider Ravenna group.