Una nuova immagine di Davide da Khirbat al-Mukhayyat? Riflessioni intorno al mosaico pavimentale superiore della cappella del prete Giovanni

The article proposes a new interpretation of the mosaic floor on the upper chapel of the priest John in Khirbat al-Mukhayyat near Mount Nebo. After having studied the numerous hunting scenes and venations of late antiquity, it is proposed that the figure of the shepherd with the sling be identified with David, according to the iconography created in the 4th century in the West and repeated many times in paleochristian art production. Inspired by the new proposed reading, it is then argued that among the Christian mosaic scenes of Jordan, paying particular attention to the two places of worship in Umm al-Rasas (namely the church of bishop Sergius and the church of Lions, in which in addition to the representation of the miracle of the healing of the paralytic and of the Phoenix), it would be possible to trace another image of David with the sling.