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117-662: Outside Romanesque architecture, the art of the period was characterised by a vigorous style in both sculpture and painting. The latter continued to follow essentially Byzantine iconographic models for the most common subjects in churches, which remained Christ in Majesty , the Last Judgment , and scenes from the life of Christ . In illuminated manuscripts more originality is seen, as new scenes needed to be depicted. The most lavishly decorated manuscripts of this period were bibles and psalters . The same originality applied to

234-463: A Last Judgement of great rarity in that it has uniquely been signed by its creator, Giselbertus . A feature of the figures in manuscript illumination is that they often occupy confined spaces and are contorted to fit. The custom of artists to make the figure fit the available space lent itself to a facility in designing figures to ornament door posts and lintels and other such architectural surfaces. The robes of painted figures were commonly treated in

351-844: A Byzantine territory in this period, also include important surviving decorative programs, especially Santa Maria Antiqua , Sant'Agnese fuori le mura , and the Chapel of San Venanzio in San Giovanni in Laterano . Byzantine mosaicists probably also contributed to the decoration of the early Umayyad monuments, including the Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem and the Great Mosque of Damascus . Important works of luxury art from this period include

468-685: A book, the Buildings , written by Justinian's court historian, Procopius . Justinian renovated, rebuilt, or founded anew countless churches within Constantinople, including Hagia Sophia , which had been destroyed during the Nika riots , the Church of the Holy Apostles , and the Church of Saints Sergius and Bacchus . Justinian also built a number of churches and fortifications outside of

585-643: A crisis in 1204 with the sacking of Constantinople by the Venetian and French knights of the Fourth Crusade , a disaster from which the Empire recovered in 1261 albeit in a severely weakened state. The destruction by sack or subsequent neglect of the city's secular architecture in particular has left us with an imperfect understanding of Byzantine art. Although the Byzantines regained the city in 1261,

702-567: A flat and decorative style that bore little resemblance to the weight and fall of actual cloth. This feature was also adapted for sculpture. Among the many examples that exist, one of the finest is the figure of the Prophet Jeremiah from the pillar of the portal of the Abbey of Saint-Pierre , Moissac , France, from about 1130. One of the most significant motifs of Romanesque design, occurring in both figurative and non-figurative sculpture

819-732: A hallmark of the later Romanesque period. Figurative sculpture was based on two other sources in particular, manuscript illumination and small-scale sculpture in ivory and metal. The extensive friezes sculpted on Armenian and Syriac churches have been proposed as another likely influence. These sources together produced a distinct style which can be recognised across Europe, although the most spectacular sculptural projects are concentrated in South-Western France, Northern Spain and Italy. Images that occurred in metalwork were frequently embossed. The resultant surface had two main planes and details that were usually incised. This treatment

936-510: A large group of Mystras churches). The icons, which became a favoured medium for artistic expression, were characterized by a less austere attitude, new appreciation for purely decorative qualities of painting and meticulous attention to details, earning the popular name of the Paleologan Mannerism for the period in general. Venice came to control Byzantine Crete by 1212, and Byzantine artistic traditions continued long after

1053-557: A miser is another popular subject. Gothic architecture is usually considered to begin with the design of the choir at the Abbey of Saint-Denis , north of Paris, by the Abbot Suger , consecrated 1144. The beginning of Gothic sculpture is usually dated a little later, with the carving of the figures around the Royal Portal at Chartres Cathedral , France, 1150–1155. The style of sculpture spread rapidly from Chartres, overtaking

1170-641: A plate in the Cabinet des Médailles, Paris, depicts Hercules wrestling the Nemean lion . The Age of Justinian was followed by a political decline, since most of Justinian's conquests were lost and the Empire faced acute crisis with the invasions of the Avars , Slavs , Persians and Arabs in the 7th century. Constantinople was also wracked by religious and political conflict. The most significant surviving monumental projects of this period were undertaken outside of

1287-654: A range of different and easily identifiable musical instruments. A number of regional schools converged in the early Romanesque illuminated manuscript : the "Channel school" of England and Northern France was heavily influenced by late Anglo-Saxon art , whereas in Southern France the style depended more on Iberian influence, and in Germany and the Low Countries , Ottonian styles continued to develop, and also, along with Byzantine styles, influenced Italy. By

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1404-429: A result of the pious and autocratic nature of Byzantine society, and partly a result of its economic structure: the wealth of the empire was concentrated in the hands of the church and the imperial office, which had the greatest opportunity to undertake monumental artistic commissions. Religious art was not, however, limited to the monumental decoration of church interiors. One of the most important genres of Byzantine art

1521-549: A revival of the late antique technique of ivory carving. Many ornate ivory triptychs and diptychs survive, such as the Harbaville Triptych and a triptych at Luton Hoo , dating from the reign of Nicephorus Phocas . The Macedonian emperors were followed by the Komnenian dynasty , beginning with the reign of Alexios I Komnenos in 1081. Byzantium had recently suffered a period of severe dislocation following

1638-460: A stone plinth , a reference to the "molten sea... on twelve oxen" cast in bronze for Solomon's temple The five scenes shown, identified by Latin inscriptions ("tituli") on the rim above and in the image field, can be read in chronological sequence: Except for the last two the scenes are separated by trees which are stylised in typical Romanesque fashion, but whose leaf shapes are all different. A continuous undulating ground-line runs all round

1755-557: A subject of scholarly debate for centuries. Giorgio Vasari attributed it to a decline in artistic skills and standards, which had in turn been revived by his contemporaries in the Italian Renaissance . Although this point of view has been occasionally revived, most notably by Bernard Berenson , modern scholars tend to take a more positive view of the Byzantine aesthetic. Alois Riegl and Josef Strzygowski , writing in

1872-429: A very high standard – these are often the structures to have survived, when cathedrals and city churches have been rebuilt. No Romanesque royal palace has really survived. The lay artist was becoming a valued figure – Nicholas of Verdun seems to have been known across the continent. Most masons and goldsmiths were now lay, and lay painters such as Master Hugo seem to have been in the majority, at least of those doing

1989-399: A viewer "could look at something which was in twentieth-century terms purely abstract and find it representational." In any case, the debate is purely modern: it is clear that most Byzantine viewers did not consider their art to be abstract or unnaturalistic. As Cyril Mango has observed, "our own appreciation of Byzantine art stems largely from the fact that this art is not naturalistic; yet

2106-540: Is a fundamental artistic attitude held by the Byzantine Greeks who, like their ancient Greek predecessors, "were never satisfied with a play of forms alone, but stimulated by an innate rationalism, endowed forms with life by associating them with a meaningful content." Although the art produced in the Byzantine Empire was marked by periodic revivals of a classical aesthetic, it was above all marked by

2223-472: Is also attested in texts from the late seventh century. These developments mark the beginnings of a theology of icons . At the same time, the debate over the proper role of art in the decoration of churches intensified. Three canons of the Quinisext Council of 692 addressed controversies in this area: prohibition of the representation of the cross on church pavements (Canon 73), prohibition of

2340-476: Is an unusually large ivory crucifix, with complex carving including many figures of prophets and others, which has been attributed to one of the relatively few artists whose name is known, Master Hugo , who also illuminated manuscripts. Like many pieces it was originally partly coloured. The Lewis chessmen are well-preserved examples of small ivories, of which many pieces or fragments remain from croziers , plaques, pectoral crosses and similar objects. With

2457-759: Is pictorial and biblical in subject. A great variety of themes are found on capitals and include scenes of Creation and the Fall of Man , episodes from the life of Christ and those Old Testament scenes which prefigure his Death and Resurrection , such as Jonah and the Whale and Daniel in the lions' den . Many Nativity scenes occur, the theme of the Three Kings being particularly popular. The cloisters of Santo Domingo de Silos Abbey in Northern Spain, and Moissac are fine examples surviving complete, as are

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2574-476: Is that there are doorways which are Romanesque in form, and yet show a naturalism associated with Early Gothic sculpture. One of these is the Pórtico da Gloria dating from 1180, at Santiago de Compostela . This portal is internal and is particularly well preserved, even retaining colour on the figures and indicating the gaudy appearance of much architectural decoration which is now perceived as monochrome. Around

2691-629: Is the life-size wooden Crucifix commissioned by Archbishop Gero of Cologne in about 960–965, apparently the prototype of what became a popular form. These were later set up on a beam below the chancel arch, known in English as a rood , from the twelfth century accompanied by figures of the Virgin Mary and John the Evangelist to the sides. During the 11th and 12th centuries, figurative sculpture strongly revived, and architectural reliefs are

2808-465: Is the spiral. One of the sources may be Ionic capitals . Scrolling vines were a common motif of both Byzantine and Roman design, and may be seen in mosaic on the vaults of the 4th century Church of Santa Costanza , Rome. Manuscripts and architectural carvings of the 12th century have very similar scrolling vine motifs. Another source of the spiral is clearly the illuminated manuscripts of the 7th to 9th centuries, particularly Irish manuscripts such as

2925-468: The 740 earthquake . The interior of Hagia Eirene, which is dominated by a large mosaic cross in the apse, is one of the best-preserved examples of iconoclastic church decoration. The church of Hagia Sophia in Thessaloniki was also rebuilt in the late 8th century. Certain churches built outside of the empire during this period, but decorated in a figural, "Byzantine," style, may also bear witness to

3042-708: The Acheiropoietos Basilica ). A number of important illuminated manuscripts, both sacred and secular, survive from this early period. Classical authors, including Virgil (represented by the Vergilius Vaticanus and the Vergilius Romanus ) and Homer (represented by the Ambrosian Iliad ), were illustrated with narrative paintings. Illuminated biblical manuscripts of this period survive only in fragments: for example,

3159-741: The Ascension of Christ in a mandorla. The figure of the crucified Christ is already showing the Gothic curve. The window is described by George Seddon as being of "unforgettable beauty". Many detached fragments are in museums, and a window at Twycross Church in England is made up of important French panels rescued from the French Revolution . Glass was both expensive and fairly flexible (in that it could be added to or re-arranged) and seems to have been often re-used when churches were rebuilt in

3276-595: The Battle of Manzikert in 1071 and the subsequent loss of Asia Minor to the Turks. However, the Komnenoi brought stability to the empire (1081–1185) and during the course of the twelfth century their energetic campaigning did much to restore the fortunes of the empire. The Komnenoi were great patrons of the arts, and with their support Byzantine artists continued to move in the direction of greater humanism and emotion, of which

3393-572: The Collegiate Church of St. Bartholomew in Liège , Belgium. The font is a major masterpiece of Mosan art , remarkable for the classicism of its style, whose origin has been the subject of great debate among art historians . The Meuse river valley in modern Belgium and France, roughly coterminous with the Diocese of Liège , was the leading 12th-century centre of Romanesque metalwork, which

3510-656: The Daphni Monastery near Athens and Nea Moni on Chios . There was a revival of interest in the depiction of subjects from classical Greek mythology (as on the Veroli Casket) and in the use of a "classical" Hellenistic styles to depict religious, and particularly Old Testament, subjects (of which the Paris Psalter and the Joshua Roll are important examples). The Macedonian period also saw

3627-468: The First Crusade . Other writers explain the style as emerging from older Mosan and Carolingian traditions, with recent Byzantine influence, and prefiguring Gothic figure style. The idealized figures are modelled in rounded forms; several nude figures are present, and one is seen from behind in a three-quarters view, a sophisticated classical pose. Art-historical argument over the origin of

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3744-670: The Gniezno Doors , and the doors of the Basilica di San Zeno in Verona are other substantial survivals. The aquamanile , a container for water to wash with, appears to have been introduced to Europe in the 11th century. Artisans often gave the pieces fantastic zoomorphic forms; surviving examples are mostly in brass. Many wax impressions from impressive seals survive on charters and documents, although Romanesque coins are generally not of great aesthetic interest. The Cloisters Cross

3861-599: The Islamic states of the eastern Mediterranean , preserved many aspects of the empire's culture and art for centuries afterward. A number of contemporary states with the Eastern Roman (Byzantine) Empire were culturally influenced by it without actually being part of it (the " Byzantine commonwealth "). These included Kievan Rus' , as well as some non-Orthodox states like the Republic of Venice , which separated from

3978-522: The Province of Burgos , Spain, though from a monastery, are secular in subject-matter, showing huge and vigorous mythical beasts above a frieze in black and white with other creatures. They give a rare idea of what decorated Romanesque palaces would have contained. In England and France , the Romanesque period saw the rise of pigaches , "scorpion-tail" or "ram's-horn" shoes much assailed by

4095-661: The Quedlinburg Itala fragment is a small portion of what must have been a lavishly illustrated copy of 1 Kings . Early Byzantine art was also marked by the cultivation of ivory carving . Ivory diptychs , often elaborately decorated, were issued as gifts by newly appointed consuls . Silver plates were another important form of luxury art: among the most lavish from this period is the Missorium of Theodosius I . Sarcophagi continued to be produced in great numbers. Significant changes in Byzantine art coincided with

4212-766: The Rossano Gospels , and the Sinope Gospels . The Vienna Dioscurides is a lavishly illustrated botanical treatise, presented as a gift to the Byzantine aristocrat Julia Anicia . Important ivory sculptures of this period include the Barberini ivory , which probably depicts Justinian himself, and the Archangel ivory in the British Museum . Byzantine silver plate continued to be decorated with scenes drawn from classical mythology; for example,

4329-453: The St. Albans Psalter , Hunterian Psalter , Winchester Bible (the "Morgan Leaf" shown above), Fécamp Bible , Stavelot Bible , and Parc Abbey Bible . By the end of the period lay commercial workshops of artists and scribes were becoming significant, and illumination, and books generally, became more widely available to both laity and clergy. The large wall surfaces and plain, curving vaults of

4446-561: The St. Gall Gospel Book , spread into Europe by the Hiberno-Scottish mission . In these illuminations the use of the spiral has nothing to do with vines or other plant forms. The motif is abstract and mathematical. The style was then picked up in Carolingian art and given a more botanical character. It is in an adaptation of this form that the spiral occurs in the draperies of both sculpture and stained glass windows. Of all

4563-503: The Theotokos of Vladimir , the cycle of mosaics at Daphni , and the murals at Nerezi yield important examples. Ivory sculpture and other expensive mediums of art gradually gave way to frescoes and icons, which for the first time gained widespread popularity across the Empire. Apart from painted icons, there were other varieties - notably the mosaic and ceramic ones. Some of the finest Byzantine work of this period may be found outside

4680-541: The fall of the Byzantine capital of Constantinople in 1453, art produced by Eastern Orthodox Christians living in the Ottoman Empire was often called "post-Byzantine." Certain artistic traditions that originated in the Byzantine Empire, particularly in regard to icon painting and church architecture, are maintained in Greece , Cyprus , Serbia , Bulgaria , Romania , Russia and other Eastern Orthodox countries to

4797-654: The semi-dome of the apse, Christ in Majesty or Christ the Redeemer enthroned within a mandorla and framed by the four winged beasts, symbols of the Four Evangelists , comparing directly with examples from the gilt covers or the illuminations of Gospel Books of the period. If the Virgin Mary was the dedicatee of the church, she might replace Christ here. On the apse walls below would be saints and apostles, perhaps including narrative scenes, for example of

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4914-740: The "Triumph of Orthodoxy." In 867, the installation of a new apse mosaic in Hagia Sophia depicting the Virgin and Child was celebrated by the Patriarch Photios in a famous homily as a victory over the evils of iconoclasm. Later in the same year, the Emperor Basil I , called "the Macedonian," acceded to the throne; as a result the following period of Byzantine art has sometimes been called the " Macedonian Renaissance ", although

5031-684: The 12th century there had been reciprocal influences between all these, although naturally regional distinctiveness remained. The typical foci of Romanesque illumination were the Bible, where each book could be prefaced by a large historiated initial , and the Psalter , where major initials were similarly illuminated. In both cases more lavish examples might have cycles of scenes in fully illuminated pages, sometimes with several scenes per page, in compartments. The Bibles in particular often had a, and might be bound into more than one volume. Examples include

5148-548: The 19th century onwards, when the dissolution of the Ottoman Empire prompted a renewed appreciation of Byzantium by artists and historians alike. Two events were of fundamental importance to the development of a unique, Byzantine art. First, the Edict of Milan , issued by the emperors Constantine I and Licinius in 313, allowed for public Christian worship, and led to the development of a monumental, Christian art. Second,

5265-577: The Byzantine Empire in the 10th century, and the Kingdom of Sicily , which had close ties to the Byzantine Empire and had also been a Byzantine territory until the 10th century with a large Greek-speaking population persisting into the 12th century. Other states having a Byzantine artistic tradition, had oscillated throughout the Middle Ages between being part of the Byzantine Empire and having periods of independence, such as Serbia and Bulgaria . After

5382-449: The Byzantine era, many continuing and adapting late Roman artistic practice though Byzantine silk production only began after they imported silkworms from China in the late sixth century. Many of these were religious in nature, although a large number of objects with secular or non-representational decoration were produced: for example, ivories representing themes from classical mythology. Byzantine ceramics were relatively crude, as pottery

5499-478: The Byzantines themselves, judging by their extant statements, regarded it as being highly naturalistic and as being directly in the tradition of Phidias , Apelles , and Zeuxis ." The subject matter of monumental Byzantine art was primarily religious and imperial: the two themes are often combined, as in the portraits of later Byzantine emperors that decorated the interior of the sixth-century church of Hagia Sophia in Constantinople. These preoccupations are partly

5616-419: The Empire was thereafter a small and weak state confined to the Greek peninsula and the islands of the Aegean . During their half-century of exile, however, the last great flowing of Anatolian Hellenism began. As Nicaea emerged as the center of opposition under the Laskaris emperors, it spawned a renaissance, attracting scholars, poets, and artists from across the Byzantine world. A glittering court emerged as

5733-532: The Empire: in the mosaics of Gelati , Kiev , Torcello , Venice , Monreale , Cefalù and Palermo . For instance, Venice's Basilica of St Mark , begun in 1063, was based on the great Church of the Holy Apostles in Constantinople, now destroyed, and is thus an echo of the age of Justinian. The acquisitive habits of the Venetians mean that the basilica is also a great museum of Byzantine artworks of all kinds (e.g., Pala d'Oro ). Centuries of continuous Roman political tradition and Hellenistic civilization underwent

5850-409: The Gothic style – the earliest datable English glass, a panel in York Minster from a Tree of Jesse probably of before 1154, has been recycled in this way. Byzantine art Art of Central Asia Art of East Asia Art of South Asia Art of Southeast Asia Art of Europe Art of Africa Art of the Americas Art of Oceania Byzantine art comprises

5967-450: The Middle Ages and the Renaissance. Byzantine art was an essential part of this culture and had certain defining characteristics, such as intricate patterns, rich colors, and religious themes depicting important figures in Christianity . Baptismal font at St Bartholomew%27s Church, Li%C3%A8ge The baptismal font at St Bartholomew's Church, Liège is a Romanesque brass or bronze baptismal font made between 1107 and 1118 now in

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6084-429: The Ottoman conquest of the last Byzantine successor state in 1461. The Cretan school , as it is today known, gradually introduced Italian Renaissance elements into its style, and exported large numbers of icons to Italy. The tradition's most famous artist was El Greco . The Byzantine Empire emerged from the Eastern Roman Empire in the 4th century AD, and its unique culture heavily influenced Western Europe during

6201-485: The Psalms) and devotional or theological texts (such as the Ladder of Divine Ascent of John Climacus or the homilies of Gregory of Nazianzus ). Secular texts were also illuminated: important examples include the Alexander Romance and the history of John Skylitzes . The Byzantines inherited the Early Christian distrust of monumental sculpture in religious art, and produced only reliefs , of which very few survivals are anything like life-size, in sharp contrast to

6318-447: The Romanesque period lent themselves to mural decoration. Unfortunately, many of these early wall paintings have been destroyed by damp or the walls have been replastered and painted over. In England, France and the Netherlands such pictures were systematically destroyed or whitewashed in bouts of Reformation iconoclasm . Murals in Denmark , as well as in Sweden , and elsewhere many have since been restored. In Catalonia (Spain) , there

6435-418: The Spanish region of Catalonia, an elaborate pictorial scheme in low relief surrounds the door of the church of Santa Maria at Ripoll . The purpose of the sculptural schemes was to convey a message that the Christian believer should recognize wrongdoing, repent and be redeemed. The Last Judgement reminds the believer to repent. The carved or painted Crucifix , displayed prominently within the church, reminds

6552-429: The adoption of Hiberno-Saxon traditions into Romanesque styles in England and on the continent, the influence was primarily one-way. Irish art during this period remained isolated, developing a unique amalgam of native Irish and Viking styles which would be slowly extinguished and replaced by mainstream Romanesque style in the early 13th century following the Anglo-Norman invasion of Ireland.) Most Romanesque sculpture

6669-434: The amount of fine metalwork owned by the nobility. The bronze Gloucester candlestick and the brass font of 1108–1117 now in Liège are superb examples, very different in style, of metal casting. The former is highly intricate and energetic, drawing on manuscript painting, while the font shows the Mosan style at its most classical and majestic. The bronze doors, a triumphal column and other fittings at Hildesheim Cathedral ,

6786-419: The base, and is variously described as of brass or bronze . It was made by lost wax casting, with the basin cast in a single piece; the size was not necessarily exceptional, as both church bells and cauldrons for large households were probably cast at comparable sizes; some church doors cast in a single piece, though flat, were much larger. The font sat on twelve oxen (two are now missing), who emerged from

6903-450: The basin. Other inscriptions run round the top and bottom rims of the basin. While the baptism of Jesus is very commonly depicted in Early Medieval art, those of the other figures are very rare subjects indeed, and this unusually elaborate and learned programme was no doubt composed with clerical assistance. It does not reflect Byzantine iconographic precedents; instead it matches closely the interest in typology and allegory , of which

7020-464: The best known is the Shrine of the Three Kings at Cologne Cathedral by Nicholas of Verdun and others ( c.  1180 –1225). The Stavelot Triptych and Reliquary of St. Maurus are other examples of Mosan enamelwork. Large reliquaries and altar frontals were built around a wooden frame, but smaller caskets were all metal and enamel. A few secular pieces, such as mirror cases, jewellery and clasps have survived, but these no doubt under-represent

7137-518: The best work, by the end of the period. The iconography of their church work was no doubt arrived at in consultation with clerical advisors. Precious objects in these media had a very high status in the period, probably much more so than paintings – the names of more makers of these objects are known than those of contemporary painters, illuminators or architect-masons. Metalwork, including decoration in enamel , became very sophisticated. Many spectacular shrines made to hold relics have survived, of which

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7254-457: The body of artistic products of the Eastern Roman Empire , as well as the nations and states that inherited culturally from the empire. Though the empire itself emerged from the decline of western Rome and lasted until the Fall of Constantinople in 1453, the start date of the Byzantine period is rather clearer in art history than in political history, if still imprecise. Many Eastern Orthodox states in Eastern Europe, as well as to some degree

7371-570: The capitals of columns, which were often carved with complete scenes with several figures. The large wooden crucifix was a German innovation at the very start of the period, as were free-standing statues of the enthroned Madonna. High relief was the dominant sculptural mode of the period. Colours were very striking, and mostly primary. Presently, these colours can typically only be seen in their original vividness in samples of stained glass and well-preserved manuscripts. Stained glass became widely used, although few survive today. In an invention of

7488-427: The church. Also of note is the Euphrasian Basilica in Poreč . Recent archeological discoveries in the 19th and 20th centuries unearthed a large group of Early Byzantine mosaics in the Middle East . The eastern provinces of the Eastern Roman Empire inherited a strong artistic tradition from Late Antiquity . Christian mosaic art flourished in this area from the 4th century onwards. The tradition of making mosaics

7605-499: The clergy at the time. Orderic Vitalis in particular blamed them for the supposed rise in sodomy and homosexuality of the era. The shoes are now principally remembered as precursors to the much more extravagant poulaines that became popular following the Black Death . Romanesque embroidery is best known from the Bayeux Tapestry in Bayeux , France or the Tapestry of Creation in Girona , Spain, but many more closely worked pieces of Opus Anglicanum ("English work" – considered

7722-450: The contemporary Chronicon Rythmicum Leodiense (English: Liège Rhyming Chronicle ) the font is clearly described, though with no mention of the artist. Both cathedral and church were destroyed during the French Revolution , and the font was hidden for safe-keeping before being moved to its present location in 1804. The Liège chronicle describes a cover with figures of the Four Evangelists and prophets, presumably also in metal, which

7839-406: The continuing activities of Byzantine artists. Particularly important in this regard are the original mosaics of the Palatine Chapel in Aachen (since either destroyed or heavily restored) and the frescoes in the Church of Maria foris portas in Castelseprio . The rulings of the Council of Hieria were reversed by a new church council in 843, celebrated to this day in the Eastern Orthodox Church as

7956-407: The decoration of Constantinople, adorning its public spaces with ancient statuary, and building a forum dominated by a porphyry column that carried a statue of himself. Major Constantinopolitan churches built under Constantine and his son, Constantius II , included the original foundations of Hagia Sophia and the Church of the Holy Apostles . The next major building campaign in Constantinople

8073-439: The dedication of Constantinople in 330 created a great new artistic centre for the eastern half of the Empire, and a specifically Christian one. Other artistic traditions flourished in rival cities such as Alexandria , Antioch , and Rome , but it was not until all of these cities had fallen - the first two to the Arabs and Rome to the Goths - that Constantinople established its supremacy. Constantine devoted great effort to

8190-413: The development of a new aesthetic defined by its salient "abstract", or anti-naturalistic character. If classical art was marked by the attempt to create representations that mimicked reality as closely as possible, Byzantine art seems to have abandoned this attempt in favor of a more symbolic approach. The nature and causes of this transformation, which largely took place during late antiquity , have been

8307-492: The dispossessed intelligentsia found in the Hellenic side of their traditions a pride and identity unsullied by association with the hated "latin" enemy. With the recapture of the capital under the new Palaeologan Dynasty , Byzantine artists developed a new interest in landscapes and pastoral scenes, and the traditional mosaic-work (of which the Chora Church in Constantinople is the finest extant example) gradually gave way to detailed cycles of narrative frescoes (as evidenced in

8424-467: The doorway are figures who are integrated with the colonnettes that make the mouldings of the doors. They are three-dimensional, but slightly flattened. They are highly individualised, not only in appearance but also expression and bear quite strong resemblance to those around the north porch of the Abbey of St. Denis, dating from 1170. Beneath the tympanum there is a realistically carved row of figures playing

8541-558: The early 20th century, were above all responsible for the revaluation of late antique art. Riegl saw it as a natural development of pre-existing tendencies in Roman art, whereas Strzygowski viewed it as a product of "oriental" influences. Notable recent contributions to the debate include those of Ernst Kitzinger , who traced a "dialectic" between "abstract" and "Hellenistic" tendencies in late antiquity, and John Onians , who saw an "increase in visual response" in late antiquity, through which

8658-473: The fall of the Western Roman Empire, the tradition of carving large works in stone and sculpting figures in bronze died out, as it effectively did (for religious reasons) in the Byzantine (Eastern Roman) world. Some life-size sculpture was evidently done in stucco or plaster, but surviving examples are understandably rare. The best-known surviving large sculptural work of Proto-Romanesque Europe

8775-584: The fifth century. Due to subsequent rebuilding and destruction, relatively few Constantinopolitan monuments of this early period survive. However, the development of monumental early Byzantine art can still be traced through surviving structures in other cities. For example, important early churches are found in Rome (including Santa Sabina and Santa Maria Maggiore ), and in Thessaloniki (the Rotunda and

8892-525: The figure of Seth, the robes have been used to great decorative effect, similar to the best stone carving of the period. Glass craftsmen were slower than architects to change their style, and much glass from at least the first part of the 13th century can be considered as essentially Romanesque. Especially fine are large figures of 1200 from Strasbourg Cathedral (some now removed to the museum) and of about 1220 from Saint Kunibert's Church in Cologne . Most of

9009-454: The finest in the West) and other styles have survived, mostly as church vestments . The oldest-known fragments of medieval pictorial stained glass appear to date from the 10th century. The earliest intact figures are five prophet windows at Augsburg, dating from the late 11th century. The figures, though stiff and formalised, demonstrate considerable proficiency in design, both pictorially and in

9126-465: The font from Greek craftsmen in Rome in about 1000, as a gift for the Basilica of Saint John Lateran there. Decades later it was carried off by Henry IV or Henry V to the Meuse. However most art historians continue to accept the traditional Mosan attribution, and relate the style to the other works mentioned above. The basin is 91 centimetres (36 in) across at the top, tapering slightly towards

9243-689: The font has been vigorous and sometimes acrimonious, and in recent decades mostly conducted in French. In support of the Byzantine origin theory, analysis of the lead in 1993 has shown that it came from mines in Spain or Sardinia , whereas other Mosan works used locally sourced metal. Pierre Colman and his wife Berthe Lhoist-Colman have developed a "Roman" theory, according to which the Holy Roman Emperor Otto III commissioned

9360-454: The font, have been questioned and alternative theories advanced. Nothing is known of Rainer's life other than that he was mentioned in a document of 1125 as a goldsmith , but a 14th-century chronicle mentions him as the artist of the font. He may have died about 1150. Another equally shadowy figure in Mosan metalwork from the next generation, Godefroid de Huy or de Claire, also came from

9477-409: The functional use of the glass, indicating that their maker was well accustomed to the medium. At Le Mans , Canterbury and Chartres Cathedrals, and Saint-Denis , a number of panels of the 12th century have survived. At Canterbury these include a figure of Adam digging, and another of his son Seth from a series of Ancestors of Christ . Adam represents a highly naturalistic and lively portrayal, while in

9594-478: The games in the hippodrome) continued to be produced, and the few monuments that can be securely dated to the period (most notably the manuscript of Ptolemy's "Handy Tables" today held by the Vatican ) demonstrate that metropolitan artists maintained a high quality of production. Major churches dating to this period include Hagia Eirene in Constantinople, which was rebuilt in the 760s following its destruction by

9711-529: The highest quality was no longer confined, as it largely was in the Carolingian and Ottonian periods, to the royal court and a small circle of monasteries. Monasteries continued to be extremely important, especially those of the expansionist new orders of the period, the Cistercian , Cluniac , and Carthusian , which spread across Europe. But city churches, those on pilgrimage routes, and many churches in small towns and villages were elaborately decorated to

9828-784: The imperial capital, including Saint Catherine's Monastery on Mount Sinai in Egypt , Basilica of Saint Sofia in Sofia and the Basilica of St. John in Ephesus . Several major churches of this period were built in the provinces by local bishops in imitation of the new Constantinopolitan foundations. The Basilica of San Vitale in Ravenna , was built by Bishop Maximianus . The decoration of San Vitale includes important mosaics of Justinian and his empress, Theodora , although neither ever visited

9945-555: The imperial capital. The church of Hagios Demetrios in Thessaloniki was rebuilt after a fire in the mid-seventh century. The new sections include mosaics executed in a remarkably abstract style. The church of the Koimesis in Nicaea (present-day Iznik ), destroyed in the early 20th century but documented through photographs, demonstrates the simultaneous survival of a more classical style of church decoration. The churches of Rome, still

10062-708: The influential contemporary Liège-born theologian Rupert of Deutz was a particular exponent (though Rupert was also a particular opponent of the bishop at the time, Otbert of Liège , who took the Emperor's side in the Investiture Controversy ). The head of God the Father that appears at the top of the Baptism of Christ (identified as PATER ) is an early appearance of God the Father in Western art ;

10179-537: The magnificent stained glass of France, including the famous windows of Chartres, date from the 13th century. Far fewer large windows remain intact from the 12th century. One such is the Crucifixion of Poitiers, a remarkable composition which rises through three stages, the lowest with a quatrefoil depicting the Martyrdom of St Peter, the largest central stage dominated by the crucifixion and the upper stage showing

10296-516: The manufacture of icons of Christ. This inaugurated the Iconoclastic period , which lasted, with interruptions, until 843. While iconoclasm severely restricted the role of religious art, and led to the removal of some earlier apse mosaics and (possibly) the sporadic destruction of portable icons, it never constituted a total ban on the production of figural art. Ample literary sources indicate that secular art (i.e. hunting scenes and depictions of

10413-516: The many examples that occur on Romanesque portals, one of the most outstanding is that of the central figure of Christ at La Madeleine, Vezelay . Another influence from Insular art are engaged and entwined animals, often used to superb effect in capitals (as at Silos) and sometimes on a column itself (as at Moissac). Much of the treatment of paired, confronted and entwined animals in Romanesque decoration has similar Insular origins, as do animals whose bodies tail into purely decorative shapes. (Despite

10530-570: The medieval art of the West, where monumental sculpture revived from Carolingian art onwards. Small ivories were also mostly in relief. The so-called "minor arts" were very important in Byzantine art and luxury items, including ivories carved in relief as formal presentation Consular diptychs or caskets such as the Veroli casket , hardstone carvings , enamels , glass , jewelry, metalwork, and figured silks were produced in large quantities throughout

10647-450: The new Gothic architecture. In fact, many churches of the late Romanesque period post-date the building at Saint-Denis. The sculptural style based more upon observation and naturalism than on formalised design developed rapidly. It is thought that one reason for the rapid development of naturalistic form was a growing awareness of Classical remains in places where they were most numerous and a deliberate imitation of their style. The consequence

10764-405: The numerous figures shown with protruding tongues, which are a feature of the doorway of Lincoln Cathedral . Pulling one's beard was a symbol of masturbation, and pulling one's mouth wide open was also a sign of lewdness. A common theme found on capitals of this period is a tongue poker or beard stroker being beaten by his wife or seized by demons. Demons fighting over the soul of a wrongdoer such as

10881-611: The part of local bishops are attested in Asia Minor during the 720s. In 726, an underwater earthquake between the islands of Thera and Therasia was interpreted by Emperor Leo III as a sign of God's anger, and may have led Leo to remove a famous icon of Christ from the Chalke Gate outside the imperial palace. However, iconoclasm probably did not become imperial policy until the reign of Leo's son, Constantine V . The Council of Hieria , convened under Constantine in 754, proscribed

10998-463: The period, the tympanums of important church portals were carved with monumental schemes, often Christ in Majesty or the Last Judgement , but treated with more freedom than painted versions, as there were no equivalent Byzantine models. Compositions usually had little depth and needed to be flexible to be fit into the shapes of historiated initials , column capitals, and church tympanums;

11115-804: The present day. Byzantine art originated and evolved from the Christianized Greek culture of the Eastern Roman Empire; content from both Christianity and classical Greek mythology were artistically expressed through Hellenistic modes of style and iconography. The art of Byzantium never lost sight of its classical heritage; the Byzantine capital, Constantinople , was adorned with a large number of classical sculptures, although they eventually became an object of some puzzlement for its inhabitants (however, Byzantine beholders showed no signs of puzzlement towards other forms of classical media such as wall paintings ). The basis of Byzantine art

11232-408: The reign of Justinian I (527–565). Justinian devoted much of his reign to reconquering Italy, North Africa and Spain. He also laid the foundations of the imperial absolutism of the Byzantine state, codifying its laws and imposing his religious views on all his subjects by law. A significant component of Justinian's project of imperial renovation was a massive building program, which was described in

11349-464: The relief sculptures on the many Tournai fonts found in churches in southern England, France and Belgium. A feature of some Romanesque churches is the extensive sculptural scheme which covers the area surrounding the portal or, in some case, much of the facade. Angouleme Cathedral in France has a highly elaborate scheme of sculpture set within the broad niches created by the arcading of the facade. In

11466-400: The representation of Christ as a lamb (Canon 82), and a general injunction against "pictures, whether they are in paintings or in what way so ever, which attract the eye and corrupt the mind, and incite it to the enkindling of base pleasures" (Canon 100). Intense debate over the role of art in worship led eventually to the period of " Byzantine iconoclasm ." Sporadic outbreaks of iconoclasm on

11583-646: The restoration of the icons in 843 and culminates in the Fall of Constantinople to the Crusaders in 1204; the Late period includes the eclectic osmosis between Western European and traditional Byzantine elements in art and architecture, and ends with the Fall of Constantinople to the Ottoman Turks in 1453. The term post-Byzantine is then used for later years, whereas "Neo-Byzantine" is used for art and architecture from

11700-689: The saint to whom the church was dedicated. On the sanctuary arch were figures of apostles, prophets or the twenty-four " elders of the Apocalypse ", looking in towards a bust of Christ, or his symbol the Lamb, at the top of the arch. The north wall of the nave would contain narrative scenes from the Old Testament, and the south wall from the New Testament. On the rear west wall would be a Last Judgement , with an enthroned and judging Christ at

11817-607: The silver David Plates , produced during the reign of Emperor Heraclius , and depicting scenes from the life of the Hebrew king David . The most notable surviving manuscripts are Syriac gospel books, such as the so-called Syriac Bible of Paris . However, the London Canon Tables bear witness to the continuing production of lavish gospel books in Greek. The period between Justinian and iconoclasm saw major changes in

11934-742: The sinner of redemption. Often the sculpture is alarming in form and in subject matter. These works are found on capitals, corbels and bosses, or entwined in the foliage on door mouldings. They represent forms that are not easily recognizable today. Common motifs include Sheela na Gig , fearsome demons , ouroboros or dragons swallowing their tails, and many other mythical creatures with obscure meaning. Spirals and paired motifs originally had special significance in oral tradition that has been lost or rejected by modern scholars. The Seven Deadly Sins including lust, gluttony and avarice are also frequently represented. The appearance of many figures with oversized genitals can be equated with carnal sin, and so can

12051-513: The small but prosperous city of Huy on the Meuse. The only other work generally agreed to be by the same master as the font is a small bronze crucifix ( Schnütgen Museum , Cologne ); another in Brussels has many similarities. A censer in similar style is attributed to Renier or a follower by many. The figures on the font are in very high relief , and have a remarkable classicism of style; so much so that it has also been suggested that it

12168-501: The social and religious roles of images within Byzantium. The veneration of acheiropoieta , or holy images "not made by human hands," became a significant phenomenon, and in some instances these images were credited with saving cities from military assault. By the end of the seventh century, certain images of saints had come to be viewed as "windows" through which one could communicate with the figure depicted. Proskynesis before images

12285-426: The tension between a tightly enclosing frame, from which the composition sometimes escapes, is a recurrent theme in Romanesque art. Figures often varied in size in relation to their importance. Landscape backgrounds, if employed at all, were closer to abstract decorations than realism – as in the trees in the "Morgan Leaf". Portraiture hardly existed. During this period, Europe grew steadily more prosperous, and art of

12402-580: The term is doubly problematic (it was neither " Macedonian ", nor, strictly speaking, a " Renaissance "). In the 9th and 10th centuries, the Empire's military situation improved, and patronage of art and architecture increased. New churches were commissioned, and the standard architectural form (the " cross-in-square ") and decorative scheme of the Middle Byzantine church were standardised. Major surviving examples include Hosios Loukas in Boeotia ,

12519-556: The top. One of the most intact schemes to exist is that at Saint-Savin-sur-Gartempe in France. The long barrel vault of the nave provides an excellent surface for fresco, and is decorated with scenes of the Old Testament , showing the Creation , the Fall of Man and other stories including a lively depiction of Noah's Ark complete with a fearsome figurehead and numerous windows through which can be seen Noah and his family on

12636-677: The upper deck, birds on the middle deck, while on the lower are the pairs of animals. Another scene shows with great vigour the swamping of Pharaoh's army by the Red Sea . The scheme extends to other parts of the church, with the martyrdom of the local saints shown in the crypt, and Apocalypse in the narthex and Christ in Majesty . The range of colours employed is limited to light blue-green, yellow ochre, reddish brown and black. Similar paintings exist in Serbia , Spain, Germany, Italy and elsewhere in France. The now-dispersed paintings from Arlanza in

12753-570: Was a campaign to save such murals in the early 20th century (as of 1907) by removing them and transferring them to safekeeping in Barcelona , resulting in the spectacular collection at the National Art Museum of Catalonia . In other countries they have suffered from war, neglect and changing fashion. A classic scheme for the full painted decoration of a church, derived from earlier examples often in mosaic , had, as its focal point in

12870-676: Was adapted to stone carving and is seen particularly in the tympanum above the portal, where the imagery of Christ in Majesty with the symbols of the Four Evangelists is drawn directly from the gilt covers of medieval Gospel Books . This style of doorway occurs in many places and continued into the Gothic period. A rare survival in England is that of the "Prior's Door" at Ely Cathedral . In South- Western France , many have survived, with impressive examples at Saint-Pierre, Moissac , Souillac , and La Madeleine, Vézelay – all daughter houses of Cluny, with extensive other sculpture remaining in cloisters and other buildings. Nearby, Autun Cathedral has

12987-631: Was carried on in the Umayyad era until the end of the 8th century. The most important surviving examples are the Madaba Map , the mosaics of Mount Nebo , Saint Catherine's Monastery and the Church of St Stephen in ancient Kastron Mefaa (now Umm ar-Rasas ). The first fully preserved illuminated biblical manuscripts date to the first half of the sixth century, most notably the Vienna Genesis ,

13104-543: Was in fact made in Constantinople , or by Greeks in Rome about 1000. Other explanations attribute the classicism to close Byzantine influence, though as Honour and Fleming point out, "In bodily proportions, poses, gestures and garments, they recall Classical models far beyond Byzantine, Carolingian, or even Early Christian art"; they suggest the artist might have seen ancient Greek sculptures in Constantinople when on

13221-473: Was lost during the Revolution, along with two of the supporting oxen. The present stone plinth and setting replaced in the 20th century a solid round stone one built in 1804. The font is still used for baptisms today; there is normally a small charge for viewing it. The font was traditionally attributed to Renier de Huy , a 12th-century metalworker and sculptor, but this, and even the Mosan origin of

13338-504: Was never used at the tables of the rich, who ate off Byzantine silver . Byzantine art and architecture is divided into four periods by convention: the Early period, commencing with the Edict of Milan (when Christian worship was legitimized) and the transfer of the imperial seat to Constantinople, extends to AD 842, with the conclusion of Iconoclasm ; the Middle, or high period, begins with

13455-556: Was sponsored by Theodosius I . The most important surviving monument of this period is the obelisk and base erected by Theodosius in the Hippodrome which, with the large silver dish called the Missorium of Theodosius I , represents the classic examples of what is sometimes called the "Theodosian Renaissance". The earliest surviving church in Constantinople is the Basilica of St. John at the Stoudios Monastery, built in

13572-545: Was still the most prestigious medium in art. The Liège font was commissioned after 1107 and completed by 1118 for the Church of Our Lady with the Font (French: Église Notre-Dame-des-Fonts ), which abutted the old Liège Cathedral and functioned as the baptistry for the city. These dates are based on the period of office of the Abbé Hellin, parish priest of the church, known to have commissioned it, for in his obituary in

13689-639: Was the icon , an image of Christ, the Virgin, or a saint, used as an object of veneration in Orthodox churches and private homes alike. Icons were more religious than aesthetic in nature: especially after the end of iconoclasm, they were understood to manifest the unique "presence" of the figure depicted by means of a "likeness" to that figure maintained through carefully maintained canons of representation. Byzantine illuminated manuscripts were another major genre of Byzantine art. The most commonly illustrated texts were religious, both scripture itself (particularly

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