Architecture

1
The Art of Byzantium
Anthemius of Tralles and Isidorus of
Miletus Hagia Sophia, Constantinople (Istanbul),
Turkey, ca 532-537
Architecture
Byzantium's grandest building and one of the
supreme accomplishments of world architecture
its steel-less structure is about 270 feet long
and 240 feet wide. The dome is 108 feet in
diameter, and its crown rises 180 feet above the
ground. In scale, Hagia Sophia is like the
Pantheon, the Baths of Caracalla, and the
Basilica of Constantine. However, the
building's present external aspects are much
changed from the origial appearance the first
dome collapsed in 558 and was replaced by the
present one, greater in height and stability.
Huge buttresses were added to the Justinianic
design, and four Turkish minarets were
constructed after the Ottoman conquest of 1453,
when Hagia Sophia became an Islamic mosque.
Even though the walls and floors are lavishly
decorated with colored stones from around the
world, what distinguishes Hagia Sophia from the
interiors of Roman buildings is the mystical
quality of the light that floods the interior.
Figure 12-3
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The Art of Byzantium
Anthemius of Tralles and Isidorus of
Miletus Hagia Sophia Constantinople (Istanbul),
Turkey, ca 532-537
Architecture
The canopy-like dome that also dominates the
inside of the church rides on a halo of light
from windows in the dome's base. The forty
windows create the illusion that the dome is
resting on the light that comes through
them--like a "floating dome of heaven." Huge
wall piers to the north, half-domes to the east
and west, and smaller domes covering columned
niches give a curving flow to the design. The
"walls" in Hagia Sophia indicate that the
architects sought Roman monumentality as an
effect, but did not design according to Roman
principles.
The use of brick instead of concrete was a
further departure from Roman practice and
characterized Byzantine architecture as a
distinctive style.
Figure 12-3
3
The Art of Byzantium
Anthemius of Tralles and Isidorus of
Miletus Hagia Sophia Constantinople (Istanbul),
Turkey, ca 532-537
Architecture
The architects were ahead of their time in that
they used pendentives to transfer the weight from
the dome to the piers beneath, rather to the
walls. In this, the space beneath the dome was
unobstructed and allowed room for windows in the
walls, which created the illusion of the
suspended dome. This technicality can be
explained by experts today, but was a mystery to
Anthemius' and Isidorus' contemporaries in the
6th century. Additionally, the fusion of two
independent architectural traditions the
vertically oriented central-plan building and the
horizontally oriented basilica was previously
unseen, and was the successful conclusion to
centuries of experimentation.
Figure 12-3
4
The Art of Byzantium
Anthemius of Tralles and Isidorus of
Miletus Hagia Sophia Constantinople (Istanbul),
Turkey, ca 532-537
Architecture
The mystical quality of the light that floods the
interior has fascinated visitors for centuries.
The canopy-like dome that also dominates the
inside of the church rides on a halo of light
from windows in the dome's base. The forty
windows create the illusion that the dome is
resting on the light that comes through
them--like a "floating dome of heaven." Thus,
Hagia Sophia has a vastness of space shot through
with light and a central dome that appears to be
supported by the light it admits. Light is the
mystic element that glitters in the mosaics,
shines from the marbles, and pervades spaces that
cannot be defined. It seems to dissolve material
substance and transform it into an abstract
spiritual vision.
Figure 12-3
5
The Art of Byzantium
Anthemius of Tralles and Isidorus of
Miletus Hagia Sophia Constantinople (Istanbul),
Turkey, ca 532-537
Architecture
The poet Paulus described the vaulting as covered
with "gilded tesserae from which a glittering
stream of golden rays pours abundantly and
strikes men's eyes with irresistible force. It is
as if one were gazing at the midday sun in
spring." The use of the gilded mosaics serves
to create a more radiant light when the sun hits
it the light is more complex and
multidimensional and creates a different aura
than if the light had just hit a plain
mosaic. The gilded mosaic changes the color of
the light to a softer, more ethereal realm that
lends itself to the atmosphere of Hagia Sophia.
Figure 12-3
6
The Art of Byzantium
Justinian, Bishop Maxanius and attendants,
mosaic from the north wall of the apse, San
Vitale, Ravenna, italy, ca. 547
Mosaics
The golden wreath of victory Christ extends
during the Second Coming to Saint Vitalis is also
extended to Justinian, for he appears on the
Savior's right side in the dependent mosaic below
and to the left of the apse mosaic. These rites
confirmed and sanctified his rule, combining the
political and the religious. The laws of the
Eastern Church and the laws of the state, united
in the laws of God, were manifest in the person
of the emperor and in his God-given right.
Justinian is distinguished from those around
him, not only by his royal purple, but by his
halo, another indication of his god-like status.
Each figure's position in the mosaic is
important. Justinian, in the center, is
distingushed by his holy halo. He seems to be
behind bishop to the right, and with the imperial
powers to the left, yet his bowl is in front of
the bishop, unifying the two groups of people.
Figure 12-10
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The Art of Byzantium
Justinian, Bishop Maxanius and attendants,
mosaic from the north wall of the apse, San
Vitale, Ravenna, italy, ca. 547
Mosaics
All of the figures are rigid in stature but the
objects everyone is holding to the right gives it
the sense of slow motion. Their feet seem to
float on the ground like divine powers and they
all have blank stares and simple charactersitics.
Iconography of religion is used for these
figures instead of veristic expression.
Figure 12-10
8
The Art of Byzantium
Theodora and attendants, mosaic from the south
wall of the apse, San Vitale, Ravenna, italy,
ca. 547
Mosaics
The empress stands in state beneath an imperial
canopy, waiting to follow the emperor'
procession. An attendant beckons her to pass
through the curtained doorway. The fact she is
outside the sanctuary in a courtyard with a
fountain and only about to enter attests that, in
the ceremonial protocol, her rank was not quite
equal to her consort's. It is interesting in
that neither she, nor Justinian ever visited
Ravenna, where they are shown in the mosaic.
Theodora's portrayal is more surprising and
testifies to her unique position in Justinian's
court.
Theodora's prominent role in the mosaic is proof
of the power she wielded at Constantinople and,
by extension, at Ravenna. In fact, the
representation of the Three Magi on the border of
her robe suggests she belongs in the elevated
company of the three monarchs who approached the
newborn Jesus bearing gifts.
Figure 12-11
9
The Art of Byzantium
Theadora and attendants, mosaic from the south
wall of the apse, San Vitale, Ravenna, italy,
ca. 547
Mosaics
Again, the figures are elongated, with bent
elbows. The faces are all facing forward, and the
eyes of the prominent figures are looking towards
the viewers. The hands of the major figures in
the mosaic are across their heart, and all of the
poses are very regal and stiff, upright. The
dimension of the mosaic is flat and there is very
little attempt at portraying objects and people
in some type of perspective.
Key word to use when describing the mosaics on
the walls of San Vitale Elongated, spiritual,
ethereal, votive eyes, religiously symbolic,
denatured
Figure 12-11
10
The Art of Byzantium
Virgin (Theotokos) and Child, icon (Vladimir
Virgin), tempera on wood, Late 11th to Early
12th Century
Mosaics
The Vladimir Virgin clearly reveals the stylized
abstraction that centuries of working and
reworking the conventional image had
wrought. The characteristic traits of the
Byzantine icon of the Virgin and Child are all
present the sharp sidewise inclination of the
Virgin's head to meet the tightly embraced Christ
Child the long, straight nose and small mouth
the golden rays in the infant's drapery the
decorative sweep of the unbroken contour that
encloses the two figures the flat silhouette
against the golden ground and the deep pathos of
the Virgin's expression as she contemplates the
future sacrifice of her son.
The icon of Vladimir was placed before or above
stairs in churches or private chapels, and
incense and smoke from candles that burned
blackened its surface.
Figure 12-29
11
The Art of Byzantium
Virgin (Theotokos) and Child, icon (Vladimir
Virgin), tempera on wood, Late 11th to Early
12th Century
Mosaics
It was exported to Russia in the early twelfth
century and then taken to Moscow to protect the
city. The Russians believed that the Vladimir
icon saved the city of Kazan from later Tartar
invasions and all of Russia from the Poles in the
seventeenth century. It is a historical symbol
of Byzantium's religious and cultural mission to
the Slavic world. These types of images were not
universally accepted by Christians. Those who
opposed the use of icons are termed
iconoclasts and those who embrace the concept of
the icon are known as iconphiles
The following passage from Exodus 204,5 explains
the reason behind the iconclast ideal Thou
shalt not make unto thee any graven image or any
likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or
that is in the earth beneath, or this is in the
water under the earth. Thou shalt not bow down
thyself to them, nor serve them
Figure 12-29