9 Byzantine Art

BYZANTINE ART
During the fifth century, the western part of

the Roman Empire was overrun by Germanic
tribes from northern Europe. The Ostrogoths
occupied the strategic Italian city of Ravenna
until it was recaptured during the reign of the
Byzantine emperor Justinian in a.d. 540.
Under Justinian, the Eastern Empire rose to
political and artistic prominence.
SAN VITALE
Situated on the Adriatic coast, Ravenna was

an essential port for controlling trade
between the East and the West. Because of its
strategic location, it became the Italian center
of Justinian’s empire and the focus of his
artistic patronage in Italy.
Exterior of San Vitale, Ravenna, a.d. 540–547. Brick facing.
The domed central core and
octagonal plan of San Vitale
diverge from the
architecture of Western
Christendom.
Interior of San Vitale looking east
toward the apse, a.d. 540–547.
MOSAICS
Is patterns or pictures made by embedding small

pieces of stone or glasses (tesserae) in cement on
surfaces such as walls and floors .The term mosaic
comes from the same word stem asmuseum, a place
to house works of art, and muse, someone—usually a
woman—who inspires an artist to create. When we
muse about something, we ponder it in order to open
our minds to new sources of inspiration. Music,
another art form, is from the same stem as mosaic.
Unlike Hellenistic mosaic, made by arranging pebbles on the
floor, Christian mosaic was made by adapting the Roman
method of embedding tesserae in wet cement or plaster.
Tesserae (from a Greek word meaning “squares” or
“groupings of four”) are more or less regular small squares
and rectangles cut from colored stone or glass. Sometimes
rounded shapes were used.
The gold tesserae of the Byzantine
style were made by pressing a square of gold leaf
between two pieces of cut glass.
Court of Justinian, apse mosaic, San Vitale, c. a.d. 547. 8 ft. 8 in. × 12 ft. (2.64
× 3.65 m).
Court of Theodora, apse mosaic, San Vitale, c. a.d. 547. 8 ft. 8 in. × 12 ft. (2.64
× 3.65 m).
Detail of the previous
mosaic, court of Theodora
Apse mosaic showing Christ with San Vitale, Bishop Ecclesius, and two angels,
San Vitale, c. a.d. 547.
Hagia Sophia
The undisputed architectural masterpiece of Justinian’s

reign is the centrally planned church of Hagia Sophia in
Constantinople. It was dedicated to Christ as the
personification of Holy (hagia) Wisdom (sophia). As part of
a massive rebuilding campaign following the suppression
of a revolt in a.d. 532, Justinian commissioned two Greek
mathematicians, Anthemius of Tralles and Isidorus of Miletus,
to plan Hagia Sophia. In their design they successfully
combined elements of the basilica with enormous rising
vaults
Manuscript Illumination
Illuminated manuscripts are hand-decorated

pages of text. Great numbers of these texts
were needed because of the importance of
the Bible, especially the Gospels, for the study
and spread of Christianity. Most were made
during the Middle Ages in Western Europe,
before the invention of the printing press.
THE CODEX
Toward the end of the first century, a new method of
transmitting miniature imagery accompanying written
texts came into use.
The codex was more practical and easier to manage. Its
pages were flat sheets of parchment and of relatively
sturdy vellum
arcade spandrels and capital, Hagia Sophia. (calfskin).
They were bound together on one side and covered like a
book, which made the codex easier to preserve. It was
also possible to illustrate (“illuminate”) the pages with
richer colors.
Joseph and Potiphar’s
Wife, from the Vienna
Genesis, early 6th century.
Illuminated manuscript.
Nationalbibliothek,
Vienna, Austria.
It is not known where the
Vienna Genesis was made,
although it is believed to
have originated in the
Near East.
Later Byzantine
Developments
In the eighth and ninth centuries, the very nature

of imagery became a subject of dispute. This is referred
to as the Iconoclastic Controversy, in which the virtues
and dangers of religious imagery were hotly debated.
The Iconoclasts (“breakers of images”), centered in Eastern
Christendom, followed the biblical injunction against worshiping
graven images, and many of them destroyed works
of art.
They argued that images of holy figures in human
form would lead to idolatry—worship of the image itself
rather than what it represented.
According to the Iconoclasts,it was permissible for religious art
to depict designs, patterns, and animal or vegetable forms,
but not human figures.
The Iconophiles (those in favor of images) were
centered in the West. They pointed to the tradition that
Saint Luke had painted an image of the Virgin and Child
. In 726 the Iconoclasts gained the support of Emperor Leo III
and in 730 succeeded in having an edict issued against graven
images, which contributed to the relatively minor role of
sculpture in Byzantine art.
When the edict was eventually lifted in 843, the Iconophile
victory led to a revival of image-making and renewed
artistic activity in the Byzantine world. Mosaics and paintings
were now officially encouraged, but sculpture—
because it is three-dimensional—remained unacceptable
to the Eastern Church.
This image illustrate both the persistence of the artist style and its
accessibility to change.
Saint Peter, Church of Saint Catherine’s monastery,
Mount Sinai, Egypt, 6th or 7th century.

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BYZANTINE ART

During the fifth century, the western part of

Situated on the Adriatic coast, Ravenna was

Is patterns or pictures made by embedding small

The undisputed architectural masterpiece of Justinian’s

Illuminated manuscripts are hand-decorated

In the eighth and ninth centuries, the very nature

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