Notes: Classical Period to Byzantine Sculpture

Classical Period

• The Classical Period lasted from around $500\text{ BCE}$ to $323\text{ BCE}$.
• It was a golden era for ancient Greek art, especially sculpture.
• Etymology: The word “Classical” comes from the Latin word “classicus,” meaning "of the highest class," because this time period set the standards for beauty, balance, and proportion that still inspire artists today.

Greek Sculpture

• Among the most popular forms of Greek sculpture is the Hellenistic style.
• Hellenistic denotes a preference in sculpture for more elaborated patterns, mannered arrangement of figures and groups, and an emphasis on the representation of movement for dramatic effects.

Characteristics

• Idealized human forms based on perfect proportions and symmetry
• Emphasis on youth, beauty, and athleticism
• Naturalistic poses (contrapposto stance introduced)
• Calm, emotionless expressions (especially in earlier periods)
• Nudity celebrated, especially in male figures (symbol of heroism and perfection)
• Movement and anatomy are realistically captured
• Progression from stiff to fluid, dynamic forms

Materials

• Marble (main material for temples and statues)
• Bronze (used for freestanding sculptures; many originals lost, known through Roman copies)
• Terracotta and limestone (used occasionally for smaller works)

Common Themes

• Mythological gods and goddesses
• Heroes and athletes
• Humanism and perfection of the human body
• Commemorative or funerary sculptures

Early Greek Sculpture

• Early Greek sculptures were tense and stiff, their bodies were hidden within enfolding robes.
• After three centuries of experiments, Greek sculptures had finally evolved and showed all the points of human anatomy and proportion.

Myron: The Discobulus

• This iconic sculpture by the ancient Greek sculptor Myron captures an intense moment of poised energy, depicting an athlete in the act of throwing a discus.
• Originally sculpted in bronze in about $450\text{ BCE}$
• Shows an attitude of maximum tension, full of compressed energy, and about to explode an action.

Polykleitos: Doryphoros

• Meaning "spear-bearer," is a famous classical Greek sculpture created by Polykleitos around $450-440\text{ BCE}$.
• Originally sculpted in bronze with a spear.
• It’s a visual example of Polykleitos’ theory of perfect human proportions, which he called the “Canon.”
• It is known for representing the ideal human form and employing the contrapposto pose.

Roman Sculpture

• Crafted primarily from monumental terra-cotta materials.
• They did not try to compete with the free standing Greek works of history or mythology, but rather they produced reliefs in the Great Roman triumphal columns with continuous narrative reliefs around.

Characteristics (Roman)

• Heavily influenced by Greek art
• More realism than idealism, especially in portraiture
• Verism (truthful representation) in busts of elders and emperors
• Sculptures were often used for political propaganda
• Emphasis on individual identity and status
• Monumental sculptures like reliefs on triumphal arches and column

Materials (Roman)

• Marble
• Bronze (used for statues and busts, but many melted down)
• Precious stones and metals in imperial works
• Terracotta

Common Themes (Roman)

• Portraits of emperor and significant personalities
• Mythological scenes adapted with Roman values
• Military victories and historical events
• Funerary and honorific reliefs

Portonaccio Sarcophagus

• Used for the burial of Roman General involved in the campaign of Marcus Aurelius. Created around $180\text{ CE}$.
• The best known and most elaborate of all "sarcophagus" (it is a box like funeral receptacle for a dead body). Carved in marble.
• Comes from a Greek word "sarx" meaning flesh and "phagein" meaning "to eat".

Sarcophagus of the Spouses

• A famous terracotta sarcophagus from Cerveteri, Italy, currently housed in the Museo Nazionale Etrusco di Villa Giulia in Rome.
• Created around $520\text{ BCE}$.
• The sarcophagus is a masterwork of Etruscan art and provides insights into their funerary rituals and social customs.
• The sarcophagus symbolizes love, fertility, and rebirth, reflecting Etruscan beliefs about the afterlife.

Byzantine Sculpture

• The dominant themes in Byzantine sculptures are religious, everyday life scenes, and motifs from nature.
• Animals were used as symbols, while some had acrostic signs (a form of writing in which taking the first letter, syllable, or word of different lines and putting them together so it can be read as a message) that contained great theological significance.

Characteristics

• Abstract, symbolic, and spiritual rather than realistic
• Less focus on physical perfection; more on religious meaning
• Flattened, elongated figures with solemn expressions
• Limited use of free-standing sculpture (due to iconoclastic periods)

Materials (Byzantine)

• Ivory (used for diptychs, icons, and small reliefs)
• Marble (for architectural details and sarcophagi)
• Gold, enamel, glass, and gemstones (for icons and reliquaries)

Common Themes (Byzantine)

• Christian religious subjects: Christ, the Virgin Mary, saints
• Biblical narratives and divine symbolism
• Spiritual over physical; transcendence over realism
• Imperial Christian power (e.g., Christ Pantocrator, enthroned emperors)

Barberini Diptych

• This is an early example of Byzantine ivory work.
• Dating from Late Antiquity, now in the Louvre in Paris and is attributed to an imperial workshop in Constantinople.
• The diptych depicts the emperor, often identified as Justinian, as a triumphant victor, riding a horse and being crowned by Victory.

Conclusion

• Classical sculpture holds significant importance due to its enduring influence on art, culture, and aesthetics.
• It established ideals of beauty, proportion, and realism that continue to shape artistic expression today.
• These sculptures, initially created in ancient Greece and Rome, served as more than just art; they were a means of conveying cultural values, religious beliefs, and political ideologies.

End Notes (from final page)

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