Early Christian Art; Byzantine Art Midterm #4 ID2241

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Early Christian: quick backround

• 1st-5th centuries

• Italy: Rome + Ravenna

• Figuras + Mosaics

  • Figuras are for capturing Jesus with figures of traits/Character type (such as a Shepard)

Byzantine Art: quick backround

• 6th Century

• Ravenna + Constantinople

Arch of Constantine;

312-315AD

• Constantine converted Rome into the Holy Roman Empire

• short, flat bodies but large heads (body deemphasized and soul emphasized)

  • The Schema

• 3 hallways/arches (Holy Trinity)

  • three will be referenced a lot

Historical Backround of the conversion of Rome -> Christianity

Early Christianity:

• The church had a lot of new converts to teach many things:

• Religion of salvaton: teaching ritual practice

• Religion of afterlife: funerary body/soul doctrine

Period of Persecution: 1st-3rd century AD

• Before it is the state religion

• secret codes, images for teaching, practice

• catacombs: funerary (funerary and sacred/doctrine)

Period of Proliferation: 4th-5th century AD

• churches had to be constructed from underground

• teaching of salvation

• financing

(general)

Catacombs, Rome, 3rd –4th c.: loculi

• From the period of persecution

• funerary and sacred/doctrine

• reserved columns

  • Not weight bearing

  • 277

• 60 miles of tunnels beneath Rome

• Loculi

  • "Shelves" which were carved into the wall and where Christians were buried

  • Body returning to soil

  • 4 million bodies entombed

  • 364

  • Introduction of an Alter

“Orant figure’;(Catacombs)

• imagery had to be vague enough that if discovered that it can't be proved

  • could be Venus or whatever

• mother and child on the right (nothing incriminating)

  • Virigin Mary and Christ Child

• Orant figure in the center

  • "Prayerful Pose" but also used in Pagan times so it could pass under the radar

  • Looks like a Cross

• Left could be Jesus in the Manger

“Good Shepherd” (Catacombs)

• Figura

• Youthful Human

• Schema:

  • large head that de-emphasized the body

• rescues (Salvation)

• another cross (the lamb on the shoulders)

  • (Crucifixion story)

• wanted to avoid references to pagan forms in this case

Old St. Peter’s, Rome, begun 320:

(Period of Proliferation) [from underground to monutmental and quick rise]

• Constantine orders the construction

• built over the believed site of St.Peter's burial

• demolished in 1605

• constructed out of wood (many fires)

• provide public space for worship

• teach rituals of Christian practice

• avoided pagan similarity

• reducing cement (more wood)

• 3,000-4,000 worshipers

Basilica Plan Church

• provide a large public space for worship

• allows for teaching of ritual practices

  • Apse -- sacred altar is located

    • where rituals happen (circular: sacred)

  • Nave -- processional way (middle)

    • processional way (rectangular: earthly)

  • Aisle -- three part division (trinity) (edges)

  • Narthex -- antechamber (entrance to the church)

    • transition from earthly

• Cruciform

  • cross-shape transept

Santa Pudenziana, Rome, 410:

• Dedicated to Pudenziana (2nd century Christian girl who refused to worship pagan gods)

  • killed

• Basilica Plan Church

• Altar

  • Where "Eucharist" is practiced

    • Commemoration of Last Supper

    • Drinking of wine and eating of bread

• Stopped its construction

  • 410 Rome fell to Visigoth invasion (Germanic people who used the Imperial Roman roads)

  • The head of the Roman Empire had to move to Ravenna

  • Division of Rome in 285AD

• Apse mosiac "Christ Enthroned"

• mosaic

  • glass or stone applied to a surface

  • individual pieces called tesserae

• New figura

  • Emperor/teacher

• Halo

  • Ring of light (holy spirit)

• Influence from Second Style of Roman Wall painting (Architectural)

• overlapping, planimetric separation

Mausoleum of Galla Placidia, Ravenna, 425: “Good Shepherd” mosaic:

• incloses the tomb of the grand daughter of Emperor Theodosius

  • Mausoleum = a building housing tombs

• In Ravenna

• Cruciform

• Not Basillica plan but Central Plan

  • focus on the center

  • makes use of an ambulatory (walking path around the inerior)

• Exterior:

  • Brick - symbol of human body

  • unadorned (no decorations)

  • avoids Greco/Roman orders

  • "Soil - "ashes to ashes" (return to the soil)

• Interior

  • mosaic (reflected light)

  • immaterial

  • symbolic of the soul or spirit

Good Shepard Mosaic

• narrative focus on action

• not holding the sheep but interacting with them

• sheep looking for guidance

• halo

• 3 sheep on both sides (trinity)

• overlapping + planimetric separation

• Cast Shadows

  • Earthliness (human form)

Byzantine Art (Eastern Roman Empire "Byzantium") [important guy]

Justinian the Great

• emperor of the Eastern Roman Empire

• last emperor to speak Latin as 1st Language

• re-writing of Roman Law

• reconquest of the Western Roman Empire (unify)

San Vitale, Ravenna, 526-547;:

Exterior: brick (body)

• filled with Mosaics

  • glass backed w/ gold

  • light reflections (immaterial Christian Soul)

• Ravenna

• Dedicated to a Martyr

  • St.Vitalis

• Central Plan Church

  • Ambulatory (getting around the church)

  • apse

  • gallary where you can look down into the center

  • central dome

apse mosaic: “Second  Coming” (Christ  between two  angels,  St. Vitalis  and Bishop Ecclesius):

• Left: Saint Vitalis

• Center: Christ on the Orb of the world

  • round earth belief

• Right: Saint Ecclesius presenting the Church

• 2nd coming

• crown: earthly rule

• book: New Testament doctrine

• Hieratic Imegery

  • not realistic in terms of representing spaces or figures

  • primary purpose to convey religious meaning/symbolism

  • spiritual event

  • flat perspective: not earthly

  • golden sky: heaven

  • no shadows: soul/spirits

  • slanted feet: floating

“Justinian,” Theodora” mosaics:

• Includes himself in the Mosaic

• Shown to be brining the bread to the altar

• Eurcharist

• Hieratic imagery

  • golden sky

  • slanted feet

  • no shadows

• His wife Theodora

• bringing the wine to the altar

• Hieratic imagery (same as Justinian's)

• tesserae (light reflections)

Sant’Apollinare in Classe, 549:

• Dedicated to a Martyr

• brick: Christian symbol of earthly body

• Basilica Plan Church

  • Apse

  • Nave

“St. Apollinaris  amid  Sheep” (“Hand of God the Creator”):

• The figure is Apollinaris (orant figure)

  • Christ characteristics Shepherd

  • 12 sheep

• Hieratic imagery

Hand of Creator:

• Hand of Creator coming from Heaven

• Solution on how to represent God

Hagia Sophia, (Isidore of Miletus), Constantinople, 532-537:

• Translates to "Holy Wisdom"

• 15th century converted to an Islamic mosque

  • which is why it has pillars so not accurate

  • they covered the mosaics w/white plaster but then the plaster was removed

• 1935 become a museum

• Combined the central and basilica plan (unifying the western and eastern Roman parts)

  • plus materials come from both sides

• Justinian chooses a physicist and mathematician as his architects

• 10k ppl and 6 years to complete

• Hemispheric dome (physicist designed it)

  • 102ft diameter + 154ft tall

• Since the building structure is square they used Pendentives (concave triangular supports) to be able to have a circular dome

• Screenshot 2026-11-04 at 5.28.01 PM.png

  • Pendentives were attatched to wall piers (support)

• OG dome destroyed in an earthquake

  • Istopher the younger added Clerestory (Windows) to the dome

    • allowed light in "floating effect"

    • reduced material (plus weight)