Byzantium, Early Byzantine Part 2 Notes

Ravenna: A Seat of Byzantine Control in Italy

• Ravenna was a vital port city and a significant seat of Byzantine control in Italy, extending the empire's influence to the western side and acting as a showcase of Byzantine art, glorifying Justinian's power.
• Some considered it an extension of Constantinople and a sacred fortress of Byzantium.

San Vitale: A Powerful Church in Ravenna

• The church is named after Saint Vitalis, a Roman slave and Christian martyr of the fourth century, who is the patron saint of Ravenna.
• Exterior:
  • Plain and undecorated.
  • Central plan with an octagonal shape.
• Interior:
  • Heavily decorated with mosaics on the ground, walls, columns, and higher regions.
  • The decorations served to transform the space into a heavenly realm.

Interior Experience and Transformation

• The plain exterior contrasts with the ornate interior, symbolizing the humble outer self and the valuable inner soul.
• Entering the church is meant to be a transformative experience, transporting the individual to a heavenly space.

Apse Mosaic: Christ with Angels, Saints, and a Bishop

• Located at the top of the apse above the altar.
• Features Christ dressed in a purple robe, a color reserved for royalty due to the expensive dye derived from a special shell.
• Purple dye was so exclusive that an emperor once forbade anyone but himself from wearing it.

Justinian Mosaic

• Located in the apse, below the mosaic of Christ.
• Depicts Justinian in the center, also wearing purple, reminiscent of Jesus and his disciples.
• Figures included in the mosaic:
  • Imperial guard bearing the inscription for Jesus.
  • Justinian's staff.
  • Julius the banker, a benefactor who financially supported the church's construction with 26,000.
  • Bishop Maximianus, responsible for the completion of San Vitale, with his name inscribed above his head.
  • Clergy members.
• The mosaic represents both imperial and religious presence, as well as financial backing.
• Justinian directly engages the viewer and is holding a lavish gold vessel.

Pictorial Fiction and Proxy

• Justinian never visited the church in Ravenna.
• The mosaic creates a pictorial fiction, acting as a proxy for Justinian's presence.
• It asserts the emperor's interest in the border zone and his desire to exercise imperial power.

Style of the Mosaic

• Proportions are somewhat inaccurate.
• Features unemotional, rigid frontality.
• Figures are aligned in a straight line, with some individualization of faces.
• Feet lack three-dimensionality and volume.

Theodora Mosaic

• Located on the opposite side of the apse from Justinian.
• Theodora's Background:
  • She came from humble origins, the daughter of a circus bear trainer.
  • She was an entertainer and possibly a prostitute in her youth.
  • She was known for her intelligence and toughness and was considered a co-ruler with Justinian.
  • A civil servant in Constantinople regarded her as surpassing all men in intelligence.
• The mosaic depicts Theodora with her attendants, carrying a chalice.
• She is outside under an umbrella, with attendants under a canopy.
• One attendant opens the doorway, inviting Theodora to enter.
• Her gown features the three Magi bringing gifts to the newborn Jesus, equating her with monarchs bringing gifts to Christ.

Visual and Symbolic Parallel

• Creates a visual parallel with Christ in purple at the top, and Justinian and Theodora in purple on either side.
• The mosaics create the fiction that the emperor and empress have visited Ravenna and are present in the church.
• Justinian holds a vessel (for wine), and Theodora holds a chalice (for bread), symbolizing the gifts they bring to the Eucharist.
• This reinforces their continuous presence in the liturgy and their role as imperial forces of the Byzantine Empire.

Manuscript Painting: Rebecca and Eliza

• Oldest well-preserved painted manuscript containing biblical scenes.
• Manuscripts contain both text and images, juxtaposed in various ways.
• The story of Rebecca and Eliza:
  • Abraham's son, Isaac, needed a wife.
  • The servant Eliza was sent to find a wife for Isaac and prayed for a sign to identify the chosen woman.
  • Rebecca agreed to give him water and to water his animals thereby signifying that she was to be Isaac's wife.
  • The city of Nahor is represented in an aerial perspective.
• A female figure, a personification of spring (running water), is included, reflecting classical influences.

Icons and Icon Painting

• Icon: From the Greek word "eikon" meaning image or representation.
• Iconography: The language by which an image tells its story.
• Subjects: Christ, the enthroned Madonna, saints, or combinations thereof.
• Purpose:
  • Objects of personal and public veneration.
  • Living images to instruct and inspire.
  • Medium for spiritual transaction with holy figures.
• Eastern Christians considered icons a means of telecommunication between the faithful and the divine.
• People began to believe that the figure resided in the image, enabling the icon to intercede on their behalf.
• Icons were believed to have miraculous healing powers.
• Settings:
  • Public spaces like churches (with candles and incense).
  • Private spaces like homes (with rituals and icon corners).
• Gaze: The eye contact between the viewer and the icon activates the image and creates a visual dialogue.

Examples of Icons

• Christ blessing.
• Virgin Theotokos and Child between Saints Theodore and George.

Virgin Theotokos and Child between Saints Theodore and George

• Theotokos: Means God-bearer or she who bore God.
• Represents Mary carrying the Christ child.
• Title assigned to the Virgin Mary by the early church.
• Saints Theodore and George:
  • Warrior saints and defenders of the faith.
  • Frontal, intervening with the Virgin on our behalf.
• Angels in the background look upwards, directing the viewer to the heavens.
• Mary and the warrior saints act as intercessors.
• Expressions: Straightforward, approachable, tender, humanized.
• The warrior saints' gaze interacts with the viewer, animating the icon and creating a devotional experience.

Mary in Different Eras

• Byzantine: Emphasized as Theotokos (bearer of God).
• Romanesque: Represented as the throne of wisdom, with Jesus symbolizing wisdom.
• Gothic: Represented as the Queen of Heaven, with royal attire.

Iconoclasm (726-843 AD)

• Debate over the use of icons.
• Iconoclasts: Breakers of images, opposing icons due to the belief that they led to idolatry.
• Iconophiles: Lovers of images, favoring icons as representations of what they symbolized.

Internal Reasons for Iconoclasm

1. Fear of Idolatry: Concern that icon veneration would be confused with idol worship.
2. Unstable Rule of Emperors: Emperors sought to reclaim authority from the church.
3. Plague and War: Interpreted as punishment for idol worship.
4. Volcanic Eruption: Viewed as a sign of divine displeasure with the sins of the empire.
5. Proliferation of Images: Led to disrespect and loss of reverence for icons.
6. Nature of Christ: Debates over whether it was possible or appropriate to create an image of Christ.

Symbolic Forms Replacing Icons

• After the destruction of icons, symbolic forms became prominent.
• Examples:
  • The cross.
  • Vacant throne of heaven.
  • Cabinet with scriptural scrolls.
  • Floral, animal, and architectural motifs.

Example of Iconoclastic Decoration

• Apse of the Hagia Irene (Saint Irene's Church) featuring a bare apse with only a cross.
• The church building itself and the Eucharist became powerful symbols of faith.

Conclusion of Early Byzantine Section

• Overview of Justinian's architectural accomplishments, presence in Ravenna, manuscript painting, icon paintings, and iconoclasm.
• Iconoclasm brought an end to the early Byzantine in 726 AD.