Study Guide 8 Byzantium
Justinian as a World Conqueror (Barberini Ivory) 550s left leaf of a diptych. Ivory 13.5 x 10.5 inches. Made in Constantinople
Saint Michael the Archangel. Early 6th C, Ivory approx. 17” x 5.5”
Hagia Sophia, Constantinople. 532-37 (Church of Holy Wisdom) Commissioned by Justinian from the architects Anthemius of Tralles and Isodorus of Miletus.
San Vitale, Ravenna, Italy. 527-47 CE.
Court of Justinian, north wall and Court of Theodora, south wall c. 547, Mosaics on facing walls of the apse of San Vitale, Ravenna
St. Apollinare amid the sheep, ca. 533-549. Apse Mosaic, Sant’Apollinare in Classe
Transfiguration of Jesus, ca. 565 Apse mosaic, Monastery of St. Catherine, Mount Sinai, Egypt.
Virgin (Theotokos) and Child between Saints Theodore and George. Icon. 6th or early 7th C. Encaustic on wood. Monastery of St. Catherine, Mount Sinai, Egypt.
The Katholikon of Hosios Loukos, early 11th C. in Greece, erected by unknown benefactors to shelter the bones of St. Luke, a miracle worker, not the apostle.
Christ Pantokrator ca. 1025, in the dome of the Katholikon.
The Crucifixion, c. 1090-1100. Mosaic in Church of the Dormition, Daphni, Greece.
Virgin and St. John flank the crucified Christ. Note the blend of Hellenistic and Byzantine.
St. Mark’s Cathedral, Venice, begun 1063. And View of Iconostasis
Anastasis, ca. 1180. Mosaic on vault. St. Mark’s Church, Venice
Christ Pantokrator, ca. 1180-1190. Apse mosaic, Cathedral of Monreale, Sicily, Italy.
Empress Irene, detail of Pala d’Oro, c. 1105. Gold cloisonné inlaid with precious stones.
St. Mark’s, Venice.
Lamentation over the Dead Christ, 1164. Wall painting, Church of Saint Pantaleimon. Nerezei, Macedonia. Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus at Christ’s feet. St. John holds his hand, and St. Mary embraces his body. Classicizing.
David Composing the Psalms, folio 1 of the Paris Psalter, c. 950-970. Tempera on vellum.
Macedonian Renaissance
Andrei Rublyev (1370-1430) Three Angels (Old Testament Trinity) c. 1140. Tempera on wood. Russian icon painting.
Vocabulary
Pendentive
Squinch
Iconoclasm
Justinian
Gallery
Iconostasis
Andrei Rublyev
Icon
Impost block
Mandorla
Theotokos
Narthex
Basil I
Anthemius of Tralles
Anastasis
Study Questions
What are the similarities and differences between the Court of Justinian mosaic and the south frieze of the Ara Pacis Augustaea?
Compare the Lamentation from Nerezi and the Anastasis from the Church of Christ in Chora. How are they different and why?
What are the innovations of Byzantine architects? Discuss specific features from at least three buildings.
Compare the Rabbula Gospels with the Paris Psalter. Consider the time frame for each. How do they reflect their environments?
Discuss the evolution of the representation of Christ from San Vitale, Ravenna; St. Catherine, Sinai; Monreale cathedral and the Harbaville Triptych. How has the figure been changed and modified? What are the political and social considerations in each period and each area?