Introduction to Early Christian and Byzantine
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The document discusses the history of architecture and design, particularly focusing on early Christian and Byzantine architecture, detailing the transition from paganism to Christianity as the state religion within the Roman Empire. It covers significant events like the division of the Roman Empire, the establishment of Constantinople, and the evolution of Christian art and architecture, including the use of house churches and basilicas. Additionally, it highlights important architectural features and historical timelines related to the development of Byzantine art, including mosaics and iconic churches.
Introduction to Early Christian and Byzantine
- 1. Prof. Amal Shah, Faculty of Design, CEPT University HISTORY OF DESIGN A J OU RNEY INTO T H E H ISTORY OF A RC H IT EC T U RE A ND INT ERIOR D ES IG N Early Christian and Byzantine Architecture
- 2. The fall of the Roman Empire? The rise of Christianity in the Roman empire Latin and Byzantine Architecture
- 3. The Roman Empire Now split into 2 by Emperor Diocletian. Only to be reunited by Constantine in the 324 AD. Constantine also legitimized Christianity and thus making Roman Empire a Christian Empire. Constantine moves the Capital from Rome to Byzantium and renames the city after himself as Constantinople. The empire had become too big to manage. So Emperor Theodosius divided it in 2 parts and gave one part to each of his 2 sons. The eastern half would be ruled from Constantinople for another 1000 years. But The western half ruled from Ravenna in the earlier part and later on from Milan would last only 80 years.
- 4. The single most important social phenomenon of the Early Christian period was the spread and acceptance of the Christian religion. During the period from the first century to the third century after the death of Jesus, Christianity was a secret society. This was due to the fact that It was considered dangerous and subversive by the emperors that Christianity was dangerous to their authority and people used to believe that Christians were a threat to their old Pagan religion and beliefs. Christians met secretly in tombs and private houses in places known as house churches. Gradually, however, it spread and became widely accepted in Asia minor and in Rome itself. The religion was tolerated but it did not have any kind of legal status until 313 AD.
- 5. Early Christian art and architecture is the art produced by Christians or under Christian patronage from the earliest period of Christianity, sometime between 260 to 525. Christian art was necessarily and deliberately furtive and ambiguous, using imagery that was shared with pagan culture but had a special meaning for Christians. The earliest surviving Christian art comes from the late 2nd to early 4th centuries on the walls of Christian tombs in the catacombs of Rome. Initially Jesus was represented indirectly by pictogram symbols such as the Ichthys (fish), peacock, Lamb of God, or an anchor.
- 6. Early Christian Architecture From several competing religions, Christianity took a dominant role, with its center moving eastward to Constantinople (now Istanbul). In design history, a time of conflicting trends begins with the growth of the European direction usually called Early Christian design, the work centering in the eastern empire called Byzantine, and the emergence of the later Romanesque style that came to dominate medieval Europe. These aspects of design history overlap, interrelate, and to a degree conflict, so that the period from the “fall” of Rome, usually dated at 476, until 1100 can seem disordered and confusing.
- 7. House churches The Dura-Europos church (also known as the Dura-Europos house church) is the earliest identified Christian house church. It is located in Dura-Europos in Syria. It is one of the earliest known Christian churches, and was apparently a normal domestic house converted for worship some time between 233 and 256 AD. It is both less famous and smaller and less extensively decorated with wall-paintings.
- 8. St. Clemente basilica, Rome
- 11. Early Christian Architecture Basilica With little money in hand of the Early Christians, it was necessary for them to adopt places of worship which could be readily constructed. Many of the Roman Temples, which were now rendered useless for their original purpose, were utilized for the new faith, and in addition new churches built on the model of the old Roman basilicas, and formed of columns and other features from Pagan buildings, were erected. The basilican church with three or five aisles, covered by a wooden roof, is the special type of the style as opposed to the vaulted types of the Byzantine style in which a circular dome was placed over a square space by means of the pendentive.
- 12. NaveAisleAisle Aisle Aisle Altar and Apse
- 14. Basilica of Sant Apollinare in Classe, Ravenna
- 16. Basilica of Sant'ambrogio, Milan
- 17. Mausoleum of Galla Placidia, Ravenna The building was formerly the oratory (a small chapel, especially for private worship) of the Church of the Holy Cross and now contains three sarcophagi. The largest sarcophagus was thought to contain the remains of Galla Placidia (died 450), daughter of the Roman Emperor Theodosius I. Her embalmed body was reportedly deposited there in a sitting position, clothed with the imperial mantle.
- 18. Fall of the Roman Empire Timeline A.D. 235-284 Crisis of the Third Century Military leaders usurped power, rulers died of unnatural causes, revolts, plagues, fires, Christian persecutions. A.D. 285-305 Diocletian splits the Roman Empire in 2, and adds junior emperors, so there are 4 caesars. When Diocletian and Maximian abdicate, there is civil war. A.D. 306-337 Acceptance of Christianity Constantine establishes Christianity and creates a capital for the Roman Empire in the East, in Constantinople.
- 19. Fall of the Roman Empire Timeline A.D. 360-363 Fall of Official Paganism Julian the Apostate attempts to reverse the religious trend to Christianity. August 9, 378 AD Battle of Adrianople Eastern Roman Emperor Valens is defeated by the Visigoths. A.D. 379-395 East - West Split Theodosius reunites the Empire, but it doesn't last beyond his reign. At his death, the empire is divided by his sons, Arcadius, in the East, and Honorius, in the West. A.D. 401-410 Sack of Rome Visigoths make incursions into Italy and in the end, under Alaric, sack Rome. This is one date given for the Fall of Rome.
- 20. Fall of the Roman Empire Timeline A.D. 429-435 Vandals Sack North Africa Vandals, under Gaiseric, attack northern Africa, cutting off Roman grain supply. A.D. 440-454 Huns Attack Huns under the leadership of Attila threaten Rome, are paid off, and then attack. A.D. 455 Vandals Sack Rome A.D. 476 Fall of the Emperor of Rome Last western emperor, Romulus Augustulus, is deposed by the barbarian general Odoacer who then rules Italy.
- 21. BYZANTINE EMPIRE Byzantine Empire was the continuation of the Roman Empire in the Greek- speaking, eastern part of the Mediterranean. It survived the fragmentation or the fall of Western Roman empire in the 5th Century and continued to exist for another 1000 years. Christian in nature, it was perennially at war with the Muslims, Flourishing during the reign of the Macedonian emperors, its demise was the consequence of attacks by Seljuk Turks, Crusaders, and Ottoman Turks.
- 22. Byzantium was the name of a small, but important town which connects the Sea of Marmara and separates the continents of Europe and Asia. In Greek times the town was at the frontier between the Greek and the Persian world. Later Byzantium became a town of growing importance with it being the capital city of the Eastern Roman Empire. Byzantium Empire at its peak
- 23. TIMELINE 285 AD – Emperor Diocletian (r. 284–305) divided the Roman empire into Greek East and Latin West. 324 – 330 AD - Constantine the Great (r. 306–337) main capital shifted from Rome to Byzantium, later known as Constantinople and Nova Roma. Theodosius I (r. 379–395), Christianity became the Empire's official state religion and others such as Roman polytheism were prohibited. Justinian I (r. 527–565), the Empire reached its greatest extent. Heraclius (r. 610–641), the Empire adopted Greek for official use instead of Latin. Maurice (r. 582–602), the Empire's eastern frontier was expanded. His assassination was caused in the Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628. Macedonian dynasty (10th–11th centuries), the Empire again expanded and experienced the two-century long Macedonian Renaissance, which came to an end with the loss of much of Asia Minor to the Seljuk Turks after the Battle of Manzikert in 1071. 1453 – The fall of Constantinople to the Ottoman Empire.
- 24. BY Z A NT INE MOSA IC A RT
- 25. St Mark's Basilica in Venice The presbytery of San Vitale Basilica, Ravenna
- 26. MOSAIC ART - HAGIA SOPHIA The church was richly decorated with mosaics throughout the centuries. They either depicted the Virgin Mother, Jesus, saints, or emperors and empresses. Other parts were decorated in a purely decorative style with geometric patterns.
- 27. Materials for Mosaic Byzantine architecture are famous for its mosaics. Made from small tiles called Tesserae, these grand mosaics were made in situ or in the exact place they were to be displayed. The kind of material would depend upon what is available and what its purpose is. On floor, to stand up to foot traffic, mosaics were made of most durable materials. Colored limestone were generally used. Marbles and granites were also used but were harder to find. Terracotta was less durable, but provided alternatives for reds and yellows. Glass Tesserae reflects and refracts light, creating a surface that sparkles as the viewer’s vantage changes. These tiles were found on ceilings and walls. Semi-precious stones and mother of pearls also added luminosity and texture to mosaics.
- 28. Icon with the Presentation of Christ in the Temple, 1400–1500 Wood, painted, with gold ground; 17 1/2 x 16 5/8 in. Double–Sided Pendant Icon with the Virgin and Christ Pantokrator, ca. 1080–1120 Cloisonné enamel, gold; 1 5/16 x 15/16 x 1/16 in. Portable Mosaic Icon with the Virgin Eleousa, early 14th century Miniature mosaic set in wax on wood panel with gold, multicolored stones, and gilded copper tesserae; 4 3/8 x 3 3/8 in. ICONS Icons (from the Greek eikones) are sacred images representing the saints, Christ, and the Virgin, as well as narrative scenes such as Christ's Crucifixion. While today the term is most closely associated with wooden panel painting, in Byzantium icons could be crafted in all media, including marble, ivory, ceramic, gemstone, precious metal, enamel, textile, fresco, and mosaic.
- 29. ICONOCLASM Byzantine Iconoclasm refers to two periods in the history of the Byzantine Empire when the use of religious images or icons was opposed by religious and imperial authorities within the Eastern Church and the temporal imperial hierarchy. Traditional explanations for Byzantine iconoclasm have sometimes focused on the importance of Islamic prohibitions against images influencing Byzantine thought. A simple cross: example of iconoclast art in the Hagia Irene Church in Istanbul. 14th century miniature of the destruction of a church under the orders of the iconoclast emperor Constantine V Copronymus Byzantine Iconoclasm, 9th century
- 30. BYZANTINE ARCHITECTURE In Byzantine work, the classical detail of Roman architecture faded in favor of limited and freer use of such basics as the column and its capital. The engineering skills of ancient Rome were, however, retained and further developed with skillful use of vaulting and domed construction. Stylistic drift, technological advancement and political and territorial changes meant that a distinct style gradually resulted in the Greek cross plan in church architecture. Buildings increased in geometric complexity, brick and plaster were used in addition to stone in the decoration of important public structures, mosaics replaced carved decoration, complex domes rested upon massive piers, and windows filtered light through thin sheets of alabaster. The 11th-century monastery of Hosios Loukas in Greece is representative of the Byzantine art during the rule of the Macedonian dynasty. The apse of the church with cross at Hagia Irene in Turkey.
- 31. Pointed arch bridge Karamagara Bridge in Cappadocia spanned 17 m is the earliest known bridge resting on a pointed arch dates back to the 5th or 6th century AD . Pendentive dome is a construction solution which allows a circular dome to be built atop a rectangular floor plan.
- 32. A cross-in- square or Greek cross plan featuring a square center with an internal structure shaped like a cross, topped by a dome. Ex: Chora Church in Constantinople Capitals sometimes took a form derived from the Roman Ionic or Corinthian, or consisted in the lower portion of a cube block with rounded corners, over which was placed a deep abacus block, sometimes called a "dosseret “. Columns were used constructively, but were always subordinate features, and often only introduced to support galleries, the massive piers alone supporting the superstructure.
- 33. SAN VITALE BASILICA, RAVENNA The Basilica of San Vitale is a church in Ravenna, Italy, and one of the most important examples of early Christian Byzantine art and architecture in western Europe. The building is styled in the Roman Catholic Church, though it is not of architectural basilica form. The church was begun by Bishop Ecclesius in 526, when Ravenna was under the rule of the Ostrogoths and completed by the 27th Bishop of Ravenna, Maximian, in 547 preceding the Byzantine Exarchate of Ravenna. The architect of the church is unknown.
- 35. ST. MARK'S BASILICA, VENICE Venice was by situation one of the connecting links between the Byzantine and Franconian empires, and a great depot of the traffic between the East and West, which is evident in Venetian architecture. St. Mark, Venice was erected, for the most part, between AD 1063- 107I, the columns and marble mosaics to the exterior being added between 1100-1350. The plan of S. Mark is in the form of a Greek cross, of equal arms, covered by a dome in the center (42 feet in diameter), and one over each arm of the cross, and is derived from the Church of the Holy Apostles at Constantinople. The vestibules fill out the western arm of the cross to a square on plan. The interior is richly veneered with colored marbles casing the lower part of the walls ; above, and extending in one great surface over vault and dome, is a lining of richly colored glass mosaic, in which are worked figures of saints mingled with scenes from their lives, set off by a broad background of gold. Mosaic, in fact, is the real and essential decoration of the church, to which all architectural detail is subordinated. The external facade has five entrances, enriched with shafts of many-colored marbles brought from Alexandria (Egypt) and the ruined cities of the East. It must be remembered that this and the external domes are a later casing upon the original exterior of the usual Byzantine type.
- 36. Detail of the gable showing Venice's patron apostle (messenger) St. Mark with angels. Underneath is a winged lion, the symbol of the saint and of Venice. Mosaic of the translation of the body of Saint Mark The Horses of Saint Mark, also known as the Triumphal Quadriga, (a four-horse carriage used for chariot racing) is a set of bronze statues of four horses, originally part of a monument. The horses were placed on the facade, on the loggia above the porch in 1204. They remained there until looted by Napoleon in 1797 but were returned in 1815. The sculptures have been removed from the facade and placed in the interior of St. Mark's for conservation purposes, with replicas in their position on the loggia.
- 37. Byzantine churches are all distinguished by a great central square space covered with a dome, supported by means of pendentives. On each· side extend short arms, forming a Greek cross, which with the narthex. and side galleries make the plan nearly square