Byzantine Art

Dates and Places:• 4th century to 1453 CE• Eastern Christian Roman

Empire• Ravenna capital city

Western Roman empire

People:• Emperor head of church• Period of iconoclasm

Exterior view San Vitale, ca. 547. Ravenna, Italy

Byzantine ArtExample: • Byzantine church on Italian

peninsula • Centrally-planned church• Mosaics of emperor and

empress • Christ and Justinian,

imperial iconography• Stylized, timeless,

weightless, frontal figures• Conceptual representation Exterior view San Vitale, ca.

547. Ravenna, Italy

Floor plan Basilica of San Vitale, c. 526-547. Ravenna, Italy

Early Byzantine StyleExample• Christ transformed into Roman

emperor type; wears purple=color of nobility

• Flanked by angels, St. Vitalis and Bishop Ecclesius who holds model of church for dedication

• Stylized landscape, drapery (some hints still of naturalism in landscape and shading of body but it is not the primary concern!)

• Representation is more conceptual than natural

• Attention not on the natural representation of the body but on the otherworldly or spiritual quality of the space=gold background

• Mosaics $$$ uneven glass helps to contribute to that spiritual presence

• Halo=round gold circle, Christ’s has cross

Christ in Majesty, apse mosaic from San Vitale in Ravenna, Italy; c. 547

Early Byzantine StyleThemes:• Icons of Christ, Virgin

Mary, and Saints • Link San Vitale with

Byzantine court

Forms:• Static, timeless • Gold backgrounds• Conventionalized figures• Conceptualized

representation Theodora and attendants, ca. 547. Mosaic, San Vitale, Ravenna, Italy

Emperor Justinian and his attendants, ca. 547. Mosaic, San Vitale, Ravenna,

Italy

Early Byzantine Style

Example

•Byzantine style is kaleidoscopic, fashion conscious

•Figures hover

•Perspective not important

Empress Theodora and attendants, mosaic, San Vitale, ca. 547.

Early Byzantine Style

Example

•Figures conceptually represented

•Evidence of competition for power

Emperor Justinian and his attendants, mosaic, San Vitale, ca. 547.

Byzantine Art

Anthemius of Tralles and Isidorus of Miletus, Hagia Sophia, 532–537. Istanbul, Turkey.

Byzantine Art

Interior view, Anthemius of Tralles and Isidorus of Miletus, Hagia Sophia, 532–

537. Istanbul, Turkey.

Example: •Name translates to mean Church of “Holy Wisdom”

•Constructed by Justinian I over site of old Christian church originally commissioned by Constantine to serve as Eastern region’s church

•Original destroyed during 532 uprising to depose emperor

•Represents imperial authority in face of opposition

•Most spectacular of remaining Justinian architecture

Byzantine Art

Interior view, Anthemius of Tralles and Isidorus of Miletus, Hagia Sophia, 532–

537. Istanbul, Turkey.

Procopius, court historian to Justinian, wrote of the Hagia Sophia:

Whenever one enters this church to pray, he understands at once that it is not by any human power or skill, but by the influence of God, that this work has been so finely turned. And so his mind is lifted up toward God and exalted, feeling that He cannot be far away, but most especially love to dwell in this place that He has chosen

*Note the lack of figurative mosaics. These were removed when turned into a mosque. One or two survive.

Byzantine ArtExample:• Central plan with nave

• Dome over crossing, influence of Pantheon

• Pendentives and semidomes visual effect and support

• Mystical light

• Plain exterior, lavish interior

• Separation of sexes

• Minarets added after Turkish conquest in 1453, becomes mosque

Anthemius of Tralles and Isidorus of Miletus, Hagia Sophia, 532–

537. Istanbul, Turkey.

Byzantine Art

Example:•Longitudinal axis taken from Early Christian basilica•Central nave large, square shape crowned by dome•Thin bricks in mortar allowed for lighter construction

Floor plan of the Hagia Sophia, Istanbul, Turkey

Byzantine Architecture

Example:•Dome supported by system of half-domes with semicircular apses and open arcades

•Dome rests on 4 arches working to carry weight•Walls with windows have no support function

• Weight supported by system of pendentives– Earliest example of pendentive use on monumental scale

Cross-section of Hagia Sophia, reconstruction, 1908. Istanbul, Turkey

Byzantine Art

Detail of pendentive, Anthemius of Tralles and Isidorus of Miletus,

Hagia Sophia, 532–537. Istanbul, Turkey.

Drawing of Byzantine construction using pendentive

View of the columns from the Hagia Sophia, Istanbul, Turkey

Byzantine ArtExample: • Byzantine Icon

• Theotokos

– Greek literally translates as “God bearer”

– Stock term indicating representation usually of Mary hold Christ child

• Encaustic and gold on wood • Active art: transmit prayers, work

miracles

• Conventionalized figures, timeless, static

• Iconoclasts destroy icons in 8th century during period of iconoclasm

Virgin (Theotokos) and Child between Saints Theodore and George, icon, sixth or early

seventh century.

Byzantine Art

Example: • Christ Pantokrator

– Image of Christ with stern look, right hand in blessing, left holding closed book

• Christ as Judge

• Mosaic in dome• Connect viewer to Heaven

through Christ• Stylized forms, patterns of

drapery, timeless gold background

Christ as Pantokrator, mosaic, Church of the Dormition, ca. 1090–1100.

The Islamic World:Religion and Culture

c. 570-1540

The Islamic World

Dates and Places: • 7th century to present• Middle East, Spain, North

AfricaPeople:• Ancestors animistic, tribal

people who worshipped over 300 nature deities

• Muslims once polytheistic, birth Muhammad 570 marks change

• Muslim followers of Prophet Muhammad

• Rapid expansion of empireThe Spread of Islam 622- 750 CE

Five Pillars of Islam

1. Confession of faith: “There is no god but Allah, and Muhammad is his Messenger”

2. Recitation of prayers 5 times a day, facing Mecca (marked by the mihrab)

3. Almsgiving: the practice of making a charitable contribution to the Islamic community

4. Fasting from dawn to sunset during the sacred month of Ramadan (during 9th month of Islamic calendar, the time when Muhammad received his calling)

5. Pilgrimage (hajj) to Mecca at least once during a Muslim’s lifetime

Islamic World

Example:• Iconic piece of Islamic

architecture• One of the earliest surviving

buildings from the Islamic world

• Original function debated though building is not a mosque

• Originally commissioned for political and religious purposes

• Byzantine and early Christian influence

The Dome of the Rock (Qubbat al-Sakhra), Umayyad, 691-2. Stone

masonry, wooden roof, decorated with glazed ceramic tile, mosaics, and gilt

aluminum and bronze dome, with multiple renovations. Jerusalem.

Exterior views of the Dome of the Rock, detailing tile work, Jerusalem

The Islamic World

The Islamic World

• The Dome of the Rock holds significance to Jews, Christians, and Muslims

• It is believed to be the site of the Jewish second temple, which the Roman Emperor Titus destroyed in 70 C.E. while subduing the Jewish revolt, the location where Abraham was prepared to sacrifice his son Isaac, and Muslims believe that the rock marks the spot where Muhammad last touched earth before his journey to heaven

Interior of the Dome of the Rock (photo: Robert Smythe Hitchens, public domain)

The Islamic World• Dome sits atop the Haram

al-Sharif, the highest point in old Jerusalem near the Western or Wailing Wall

• Caliph Abd El-Malik placed the monument on the Haram as-Sharif, the Noble Sanctuary, in order to enshrine the sacred rock from which, Muslims believe, Muhammad made al-isra', the Night Journey and ascended to visit Allah in heaven (Koran 17:1)

• Gold dome symbolizes Islam’s triumph over other religions (Judaism, Christianity) in the area’s ability to maintain Islam as dominant religion

The Dome of the Rock (Qubbat al-Sakhra), Umayyad, 691-2 with view of Western Wall. Stone masonry, wooden roof, decorated with glazed ceramic tile, mosaics, and gilt aluminum and bronze dome, with multiple renovations

The Islamic World

Interior of the Dome of the Rock, Jerusalem.

• Lack of wood leads to alternative decoration of interior spaces

• Note the abundance of geometric tile work and rugs– Rugs allow for easy

manipulation of space

Islamic Luxury Arts

Example: • Rug in funerary mosque• One of the world's oldest and

most significant Islamic carpets

• Rugs replace wood furniture, create functional multi-purpose rooms

• Wool carpet by master designer

• Heavenly dome design with water and lotus blossoms

• Lanterns in design

Medallion Carpet, “The Ardabil Carpet,” Maqsud of Kashan, Persian, Safavid Dynasty, 1539-40

C.E. Silk warps and wefts with wool pile (25 million knots, 340 per sq. inch). Tabriz, Kashan,

Isfahan or Kirman, Iran. Currently at the Victoria & Albert Museum, London.

Islamic World

Themes:• Restrictions on holy

images • Geometric pattern,

vegetal design, calligraphic passages from Koran

Forms:• Non-illusionistic • Repetition of design• Rich colors, materials Malwiya minaret, Great Mosque,

Samarra, 848–852.

Islamic Architecture

Example: • Mosque for collective

prayer • Muhammad’s house as

model, also Roman forum• Hypostyle hall, qibla wall,

mihrab, minaret• Maqsura for ruler• Plain exterior, lavish

interior

View and plan, Great Mosque, Kairouan, Tunisia, ca. 836–875.

Islamic ArchitectureExample: •Once housed statues of gods and sacred Black Stone•Muslim tradition believes the Kaaba to have been built by Abraham and his son, Ishmael•Marks sacred spot where Abraham prepared to sacrifice son, Isaac•Muslims must make hajj to Kaaba at least once in lifetime

The Kaaba, Mecca, Saudi Arabia.

Islamic ArchitectureExample: • Mosaic tile ornamentation • Repeating vegetal motifs• Calligraphy from Koran to assist in prayers

– Inner border: (in Kufic script): "Said [the Prophet] on him be blessing and peace: . . . witness that there is no God save Allah and that Muhammad is his Apostle and the Blessed Imam, and in legal almsgiving, and in the pilgrimage, and in the fast of Ramadan, and he said, on him be blessing and peace."

– Central framed text: "The Prophet, peace be upon him, said, 'The Mosque is the dwelling place of the pious.’”

• Abstract patterns• Lacks figural representation of holy figures

Mihrab (prayer niche), 1354–55 (A.H. 755), just after the Ilkhanid period, Madrasa Imami, Isfahan,

Iran. Polychrome glazed tiles, 135 1/16” x 113 11/16.” Metropolitan

Museum of Art, NYC

Luxury Arts

Example: • Qur’an principle text of

Islam

• Kufic script

• Integration of text and ornament

• Lacks figural representation• Authority of Muslim ritual

and life providing guidance on law, morals, ethics, worship, and injunctions for everyday conduct Qur'an fragment, in Arabic, possibly Iraq, before

911 C.E., vellum, MS M.712, fols. 19v–20r, 9 x 12.6.” The Morgan Library and Museum, NYC.

Islamic ArchitectureExample: • Hypostyle hall • Double-tiered arches

add height• Columns from earlier

structure• Horseshoe arch,

maybe Visigoth or Near Eastern

• Lavish mosaics and stucco Prayer hall, Great Mosque, Córdoba,

Spain, 8th to 10th centuries.

Islamic ArchitectureExample:

• Iranian mosque type

• Courtyard with two-story arcade

• Four iwans (vaulted rectangular halls or spaces)

• Qibla iwan is largest

Prayer hall, Great Mosque, Córdoba, Spain, 8th to 10th centuries.

Islamic Architecture

View of three (of four) Iwans, Great Mosque of Isfahan, Iran, 11th - 17th centuries, looking toward the south (qibla) iwan

Islamic Architecture

Example: •Focal point of prayer hall is the horseshoe arched mihrab or prayer niche

•The mihrab marks the wall that faces Mecca, the birth place of Islam (it is the qiblah wall)

•Gold tesserae (small pieces of glass with gold and color backing) create a dazzling combination of dark blues, reddish browns, yellows and golds that form intricate calligraphic bands and vegetal motifs that adorn the arch Mihrab of the Great Mosque at Córdoba, 11th cent.

Glass and gold mosaics on marble.

Luxury ArtsExample: •Work highlights Islam’s presence in Africa and dominance in slave trade•Islam Africa’s fastest growing religion•Image also shows woman veiled with hajib, covering her neck, torso, and part of face, excluding eyes

– Local customs governed women’s dress

– In some areas women are expected to wear a chador

The Slave Market at Zabĭd, Yemen, from the Maqămăt of al-Harĭr ĭ, 1237. National

Library of France.

Luxury Arts

Example:•Pedanius Dioscorides was a Roman army doctor in the first century AD. His treatise describes how to make medicine from up to five hundred plants, explaining where to find each plant, how to harvest it, how to prepare it as a drug, and which ailments it will cure. The book was translated into Arabic in the mid-ninth century at a famous translation institute in Baghdad, known as the House of Wisdom. Leaf from an Arabic translation of the

Materia Medica of Dioscorides ("The Pharmacy"), 1224. Iraq, Baghdad

School. Colors and gilt on paper, 12” x 9.” Metropolitan Museum of Art, NYC.

The Islamic World Example:•Combination of diagrams and some portrait pages of author or patron•More narrative scenes, like this one show people harvesting herbs, making medicines, and treating patients according to Dioscorides instructions •This page shows the making of medicine from honey•Brilliant colors, energetic figures in contemporary local dress, and a balanced, bilaterally symmetry characterize composition•The neutral color of the page itself, serves as background reinforcing the two-dimensionality of the picture Leaf from an Arabic translation of the

Materia Medica of Dioscorides ("The Pharmacy"), 1224. Iraq, Baghdad

School. Colors and gilt on paper, 12” x 9.” Metropolitan Museum of Art, NYC.