Byzantine architecture is called the architectural style that was in force during the Byzantine Empire (Eastern Roman Empire) since the fall of the Western Roman Empire in the century, although some authors consider the century as the starting point, when Emperor Constantine decided to move the capital to ancient Byzantium, renaming it Constantinople (present-day Istanbul).
Byzantine architecture is part of the framework of Byzantine art, and covers a long period of time, which begins in the century and ends abruptly with the fall of Constantinople into the hands of the Ottoman Turks in 1453, already in the century. Due to its long duration in time, it is usually divided for study into three different periods: an initial period, an intermediate period and a final period.
Regarding the geographical framework in which the Byzantine architectural style is produced, this broadly coincides with the geographical extension of the Byzantine Empire, which changed over time due to the historical and political circumstances of said kingdom throughout the more than ten centuries of validity of said style. However, the areas with the greatest presence of Byzantine architecture correspond to the territories of modern-day Turkey and Greece, without forgetting Bulgaria, Romania and large parts of Italy, along with Syria and Palestine (Palestine (region)). Furthermore, as a result of the expansion of Christianity among the Slavic peoples carried out beginning in the century by the Byzantine Orthodox Church, Byzantine architecture spread throughout present-day Ukraine, Russia and Belarus, with some of its architectural elements (such as bulbous domes) becoming a hallmark of Orthodox churches, which have been maintained to the present day.
On the other hand, Byzantine art was an official type of art,[Sc. 1] based on the relations of ecclesiastical power with civil power, which was supported by the support of the Church. And the very existence of the Byzantine Empire was linked to the expansion of the Orthodox faith and Byzantine art.[Sc. 2].
Due to the historical circumstances and the geographical area in which it was generated and in which it was present, Byzantine architecture received, on a base formed essentially by Roman architecture, strong influences from other architectural styles, especially styles from the Middle East area. On the other hand, in addition to the already noted influence on the architectural styles of countries related to the Orthodox Church, it should be noted that from the area of Ravenna, in Italy, at its western end of distribution, it influenced Carolingian architecture and, through this, on Romanesque architecture, while from the south of Italy, especially in the area of Sicily, it contributed some of its characteristics to the version adapted in the area of Norman architecture, which was one of the variants of Romanesque architecture.
Byzantine Architecture
Introduction
Byzantine architecture is called the architectural style that was in force during the Byzantine Empire (Eastern Roman Empire) since the fall of the Western Roman Empire in the century, although some authors consider the century as the starting point, when Emperor Constantine decided to move the capital to ancient Byzantium, renaming it Constantinople (present-day Istanbul).
Byzantine architecture is part of the framework of Byzantine art, and covers a long period of time, which begins in the century and ends abruptly with the fall of Constantinople into the hands of the Ottoman Turks in 1453, already in the century. Due to its long duration in time, it is usually divided for study into three different periods: an initial period, an intermediate period and a final period.
Regarding the geographical framework in which the Byzantine architectural style is produced, this broadly coincides with the geographical extension of the Byzantine Empire, which changed over time due to the historical and political circumstances of said kingdom throughout the more than ten centuries of validity of said style. However, the areas with the greatest presence of Byzantine architecture correspond to the territories of modern-day Turkey and Greece, without forgetting Bulgaria, Romania and large parts of Italy, along with Syria and Palestine (Palestine (region)). Furthermore, as a result of the expansion of Christianity among the Slavic peoples carried out beginning in the century by the Byzantine Orthodox Church, Byzantine architecture spread throughout present-day Ukraine, Russia and Belarus, with some of its architectural elements (such as bulbous domes) becoming a hallmark of Orthodox churches, which have been maintained to the present day.
On the other hand, Byzantine art was an official type of art,[Sc. 1] based on the relations of ecclesiastical power with civil power, which was supported by the support of the Church. And the very existence of the Byzantine Empire was linked to the expansion of the Orthodox faith and Byzantine art.[Sc. 2].
Due to the historical circumstances and the geographical area in which it was generated and in which it was present, Byzantine architecture received, on a base formed essentially by Roman architecture, strong influences from other architectural styles, especially styles from the Middle East area. On the other hand, in addition to the already noted influence on the architectural styles of countries related to the Orthodox Church, it should be noted that from the area of Ravenna, in Italy, at its western end of distribution, it influenced Carolingian architecture and, through this, on Romanesque architecture, while from the south of Italy, especially in the area of Sicily, it contributed some of its characteristics to the version adapted in the area of Norman architecture, which was one of the variants of Romanesque architecture.
Some of the distinctive characteristics of Byzantine architecture are, in addition to the already indicated shape of the domes, the use of brick as a construction material to replace stone, the massive use of mosaics as a decorative element to replace sculptures, the greater elevation of the buildings as a result of the elevation of the domes, and the discovery of a system that allows combining the constructive use for said domes, of a support with a square "Plan (architecture)"), but that allows the finishing by a drum "Drum (architecture)") in a round dome, often with an extension of a wavy eaves "Roof (construction)").
Periods
Contenido
El largo período de tiempo abarcado por la arquitectura bizantina suele dividirse en tres subperíodos claramente diferenciados:.
Primitive period (527-843)
Originally, Byzantine architecture was just an extension of ancient Roman architecture. During the Late Empire, the expansion of Christianity had led to the development of early Christian architecture, with the construction of churches whose floor plans—derived from those of pagan temples and especially Roman civil basilicas that had been converted into places of worship—gradually adopted forms more suitable for Christian worship. monastics; but in parallel an architecture was developed in which the central plan, in the shape of a rotunda or a Greek cross, gradually replaced the longitudinal development.[Ma. 1] Bricks, as a construction material, were used more than carved stone, the arrangement of the columns became freer. Figurative mosaics with a gold background became the essential element of the interior decoration, particularly of the vaults and domes. sought to completely eliminate the wooden carpentry coverings, which naturally led to the abandonment of the basilica plan, which was replaced by plans resulting from sets of domes and half-domes that became increasingly complex.[Ma. 2] After the great crisis of late Antiquity, which saw the fall of the Western Roman Empire, the century was a very fruitful period of renewal and experimentation in the architectural domain of the Eastern Roman Empire, which then reached its peak. coexistence of a great diversity of plants, which were sometimes combined in complex ways. The emperors Justin I (r. 518-527) and Justinian (r. 527-565) were two great builders of both their religious buildings (churches) and civil buildings (fortresses, palaces, public buildings, markets, aqueducts).[Ka. 1] It was the past greatness of Roman civilization that was truly reborn for a time in Constantinople.
Many of the monuments of this early architectural period have now disappeared. The most representative examples that survive were erected during the reign of Emperor Justinian and are found in Ravenna and Constantinople. At that time a decisive progress was made in the history of architecture when the architects Anthemius of Trales and Isidore of Miletus discovered how to suspend a large circular dome over a square space using the pendentive technique, a particularly elegant method, both geometrically and aesthetically. It allowed the large domes to rest on four thick pillars. Certainly some experiments had already taken place both in the West and in the East on the use of a dome to cover square, rectangular or cruciform buildings, but in the Basilica of Hagia Sophia "Basilica of Hagia Sophia (Constantinople)") perfection was reached and the dome became a symbol of Byzantine architecture.[Ma. 3][1] In churches with smaller domes the pendentives were replaced by horns "Trumpet (architecture)").[Gl. 1].
The plan of Hagia Sophia (which means 'Holy Wisdom', from the Greek Hagia Sophia) is an original synthesis of two types of plan: the central one, in the shape of a square crowned by a dome and surrounded by apses and absidioles; and the longitudinal (basilical), which allows the central nave to be expanded, also bordered by side naves. Despite its complexity, it turned out to be a solution of great unity and harmony, making this basilica one of the most admired masterpieces in the history of architecture. Although the church is dominated by its enormous central dome, its floor plan preserves that of a basilica with a central nave and side naves[Gl. 2] separated by two colonnades that border the nave; but here the rows of traditional columns are modified by the insertion of four large pillars that serve as support for the pendentives that support the dome.
The square plan of the central part of the nave is compressed in length by two enormous apses of the same width as the central square of the nave (). The semicircular plan of these apses is itself expanded with two smaller apses on its sides. These apsidioles are carried in their center by two columns in red porphyry (more striking) that separate them from the side naves and thus pursue the colonnades that border the nave beyond the large pillars. The large pillars are even decorated with false columns in porphyry or green marble depending on the sides. All of these devices manage to create a kind of large nave, twice as long as it is wide, and to free up in the church a gigantic interior volume devoid of any structure, unmatched until then, covered by the large dome in the center and flanked by several semi-domes. Furthermore, the technique of the pendentives resting on the pillars made the high side walls structurally unnecessary (they do not support loads), which made it possible to insert the side colonnades on two levels (including a floor for the stands) and open the walls above the stands to majestically illuminate the interior through a multitude of windows on two additional levels, to which is added the crown of forty windows that the architects knew how to create in the dome. The church is as luminous as the first early Christian basilicas that only supported wooden carpentry, and the effect is surprising.
The church of the Holy Apostles of Constantinople, also built under Justinian and now disappeared, constituted another attempt to merge floors, deploying a much simpler solution but one that gave less unity to the interior volume: it was a Greek cross composed of five juxtaposed square spaces, with pillars in its corners that supported the pendentives that supported five domes of identical diameters. This resulted in a long nave bordered by pillars that support three domes in a row; This nave was crossed by a transept of the same size and design as the central nave.[Ta. 1] This church has been destroyed today, but St. Mark's Basilica in Venice, which will be analyzed later, constitutes a kind of replica built five centuries later.
In Ravenna, the central-plan basilica of San Vitale (San Vitale), built in the 19th century,[2] and the Basilica of San Apolinar Nuovo, built at the beginning of the century by Theodoric the Great, are two of the best preserved and harmonious examples of a traditional basilica plan. In Constantinople, in addition to the Basilica of the Holy Wisdom (Hagia Sophia), the Basilica of Saint Irene "Church of Saint Irene (Constantinople)") was built in the reign of Justinian, near the Basilica of Saints Sergius and Bacchus "Church of Saints Sergius and Bacchus (Constantinople)") (also called "small Hagia Sophia"), built between 527 and 536[Ma. 6] and it is said that it served as a model for the first two, because in it there is also a combination of distinctive characteristics of longitudinal and centralized churches.[N 1].
From the same period, among the buildings not dedicated to worship, the Great Palace of Constantinople stands out, now in ruins,[3] as well as the Theodosian Wall (probably started under Theodosius II), which with its twenty kilometers in length and its imposing towers, today is one of the main tourist attractions of the city, in addition to allowing it to resist all its enemies for more than a thousand years. Mention should also be made of another building initiated under Justinian in the 530s, the “Submerged Palace” (in Turkish, Yerebatan Sarayī), which served multiple purposes and housed an underground tank adorned with 28 rows of 12 columns each supporting brick vaults.[Ma. 8] In addition to the "Justinian Aqueduct", you can still admire the monumental bridge that allows you to cross the Sangarius River (today Sakarya) dating from the 1st century, as well as the bridge over the Karamagara"), a century-old vaulted bridge or a single arch long and high in eastern Turkey.[Ma. 9].
In the other countries of the empire, mention should be made of the church of Hagios Demetrios of Thessaloniki "Church of Saint Demetrius (Thessaloniki)"), the fortified convent of Saint Catherine of Sinai and the monastery of Djvari (17th century) in modern Georgia, as well as the three churches of the great monastic complex of Echmiadzin, seat of the Catholicos of Armenia.[Ta. 2]
All of these buildings have some characteristics in common. Firstly, a series of ancient traditions can be seen evolving in the century, such as the Corinthian capitals with complicated volutes that became the imposted capital or Byzantine capital.[Gl. 3] These capitals are quite varied in their shapes and decorations, but the most characteristic is the pyramidal type with delicate foliage or carved geometric motifs, as if it were a layer of lace that gives the illusion of housing such an airy network inside or in a vacuum. Smooth columns without grooves appear lighter. The heavy entablatures of classical architecture have definitively disappeared or been reduced to friezes, just as the large architraves, which gave a monumental character to ancient classical architecture, were replaced by semicircular arches, both lighter and more efficient. When the covering is of masonry, it is secured almost everywhere by smooth, rounded vaults or domes instead of coffered ceilings. Mosaic floors tend to be replaced by marble pavements with rounded and geometric motifs derived from the ancient opus sectile. In large church halls, columns often support a floor of tribunes[Gl. 4] and not just the roof. In general, architecture seeks to elevate and dematerialize, pursues abstraction, isolating itself from a concrete and terrestrial context: mosaics with a golden background play an important role in reinforcing this effect. On a historical level, it can be said that the Byzantine architecture of the century represents the apogee and completion of a long process of development of early Christian architecture, in which architects explored new forms and maximized the technical possibilities they had, [Ma. 10] but it was also the first important milestone of medieval Christian architecture, establishing principles, ideals and research that would be developed in other forms of architecture and find other solutions throughout the Middle Ages.
Intermediate period (843-1204)
The fruitful and innovative period of Justinian was followed by two centuries of lethargy marked by the Slavic invasions in the Balkans, the wars with Persia") and the siege of Constantinople in 626 "Siege of Constantinople (626)"), the rise of the Arabs and Islam, the definitive loss of Palestine "Palestine (region)"), Syria and Egypt in the years 630-640, the conquest of North Africa by the Arabs who besieged Constantinople again in 674-678 "Siege of Constantinople (674-678)") and 717-718 "Siege of Constantinople (717-718)"). During those two centuries, religious architecture stagnated, a result of the iconoclastic crisis during which images were removed from existing temples without building new ones. civil wars and the decline of cities. During that time the main focus was to repair or maintain existing buildings.[Ma. 11][Ka. 1] These two centuries form a kind of hinge that could be classified in this period or the previous one.
They will be included here in the intervening period, because it was probably in the century when the first inscribed cross churches were built, a plan still used in the Orthodox Church. This type of church, generally quite small, is centered around a naos "Naos (architecture)") (the Holy of Holies) divided into nine bays by four columns supporting a dome. To the west is the narthex (entrance hall) and to the east the bêma (generally elevated sanctuary where the altar is located protected by a canopy, resting on pillars, called ciborium "Ciborium (architecture)")), previously separated by a screen from the naos, currently replaced by an iconostasis (wall on which the icons are arranged). Directly below the main dome is the ambo (elevated pulpit from which the Scriptures were read), and at the foot of the ambo, the space reserved for the choir of singers. Around the apse, [Gl. 5] the clergy had their place on steps of stairs that surrounded the throne of the patriarch (the synthronon). On each side of the bêma there were two small sacristies, the diaconicon (altar for the treasure, liturgical vestments and sacred texts) and the prothesis (altar for the preparation of communion).[4].
These churches, with their almost square shape, unlike longitudinal or axial type churches, wanted to represent the hierarchy of the cosmos in their architecture. Starting from the highest part, the dome, the gaze descends over the vaults that protrude from the bêma and the apses, before joining the walls. This hierarchy was made tangible by the marble cornices that separated each of the three components: at the top, in the dome, there was a mosaic representing Christ and below, another representing the Virgin in the semi-dome of the apse; and on the third and final level, angels, prophets, apostles, church fathers and other saints appeared, while the walls illustrated various festivities of the liturgical calendar.[Ma. 12].
Late period (1204-1453)
The final period or Third Golden Age covers the period of time between the centuries and , coinciding with the government of the dynasties of the Komneni and the Paleologues.
Already in the 2nd century, the Byzantine Empire began to crumble: the thema of Cyprus was separated in 1185 and four years later Theodore Mangafas became lord of Philadelphia "Philadelphia (Turkey)"). The fall of Constantinople in 1204 only accelerated that trend, as the empire of Nicaea and the empire of Trebizond, the despotate of Epirus (with capital at Arta), the principality of Morea (with capital at Mistra), and several Latin principalities were formed. The architecture of this period followed the evolution of the political influences exerted on those territories (Georgians and Turks for the empire of Trebizond; Franks and Slavs for the despotate of Epirus; Venetians and Genoese for the great commercial centers), as well as religious: Catholic Church and Islam. Whether in the construction of castles or fortresses or churches, the Gothic style began to penetrate this region of the world.[Ma. 19].
The Latin occupation (1204-1261) also marked the end of Constantinople's influence on the development of architecture. New centers appeared such as Nicaea, Trebizond and Arta. After the reconquest of Constantinople, new buildings, mainly churches, monasteries and palaces, will see the light, but this new momentum will be quickly slowed down by the civil wars of the 1320s and 1340s. Many craftsmen will leave the capital to settle in other places and thereby give a boost to local architecture (Mesembria, Skopje, Bursa).[Ka. 3].
The despotate of Epirof is probably the most dynamic architecturally, with many monuments associated with the reigning family. Two of the main buildings of this period are the monastery of Katô Panagia, near Arta, built by the despot Michael II between 1231 and 1271, and the basilica of Porta Panagia, near Trikkala, erected in 1283 by John I Ducas, son of Michael II. These two buildings have "groin vaults".[Gl. 8] Widely spread in Greece since the 19th century, this church plan with three naves resembles that of the inscribed cross, but without a dome. The masterpiece of the Epirote school, however, remains the Church of the Parigoritissa "Church of the Panagia Parigoritissa (Arta)"), erected in 1290 by the despot Nikephoros I Comnenus Doukas. It is an almost square building with three floors. Octagonal in type, the central dome is supported by eight pillars; four smaller domes adorn each corner of the flat roof.[Ma. 20][Ka. 4].
In Constantinople itself and in Asia Minor, the architecture of the Comenian period was practically non-existent, with the exception of Elmali Kilise"), a rock-cut church, built around 1050 in central Cappadocia and comprising four irregular pillars forming a Greek cross and supporting a dome,[Ta. 5] as well as the churches of the (today known as ) and the (Virgin of the Throne, today known as ) of Constantinople.
Characteristics
La arquitectura bizantina mantuvo varios elementos de la arquitectura romana y de la paleocristiana oriental, como los materiales (ladrillo y piedra para revestimientos exteriores e interiores de mosaico), arquerías de medio punto, columna "Columna (arquitectura)") clásica como soporte, etc. Pero también aportaron nuevos rasgos entre los que destaca la nueva concepción dinámica de los elementos y un novedoso sentido espacial y, sobre todo, su aportación más importante, el empleo sistemático de la cubierta "Cubierta (construcción)") abovedada, especialmente la cúpula sobre pechinas, es decir, triángulos esféricos en los ángulos que facilitan el paso de la planta "Planta (arquitectura)") cuadrada a la circular de la cúpula. Estas bóvedas semiesféricas se construían mediante hiladas concéntricas de ladrillo, a modo de coronas de radio decreciente reforzadas exteriormente con mortero "Mortero (construcción)"), y eran concebidas como una imagen simbólica del cosmos divino.
Otra aportación de gran transcendencia fue la decoración de capiteles, de los que hubo varios tipos; así, el de tipo teodosiano es una herencia romana, empleado durante el siglo como evolución del corintio y tallado a trépano, semejando a avisperos; otra variedad fue el capitel cúbico de caras planas decorado con relieves a dos planos. En uno y otro caso era obligada la colocación sobre ellos de un cimacio o pieza troncopiramidal decorada con diversos motivos y símbolos cristianos.
En la tipología de los templos, según la planta, abundan los de planta centralizada, sin duda concordante con la importancia que se concede a la cúpula, pero no son inferiores en número las iglesias de planta basilical y las cruciformes con los tramos iguales (planta de cruz griega).
En casi todos los casos es frecuente que los templos, además del cuerpo de nave principal, posea un atrio o nártex, de origen
paleocristiano, y el presbiterio "Presbiterio (arquitectura)") precedido de iconostasio, llamada así porque sobre este
cerramiento calado se colocaban los iconos pintados.
Structural evolution
In the early days of the first period of Byzantine architecture, the construction of churches in the regions of Palestine "Palestine (region)") and Syria at the time of Emperor Constantine II "Constantine II (emperor)") were made according to two different models of the plan "Plan (architecture)") of the building: the basilical or axial plan, as for example happens in the church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem, and the circular or central plan, as is the case of the now lost great church octagonal that existed in Antioch.
It must be assumed that churches with a central plan almost always had a vaulted roof, since the existence of a central dome was their true reason for existence. The central space was surrounded by a very thick wall, in which deep holes appeared on the inside, as in the church of Saint George "Church of Saint George (Thessaloniki)") in Thessaloniki (19th century), or by an ambulatory with a barrel vault, as is the case in the mausoleum of Saint Constance in Rome (20th century).
The deep openings existing in the central space would thus form the arms of a cross, thus contributing to the support of the central vault of the building, as happens, for example, in the case of the Mausoleum of Gala Placidia in Ravenna, dating from the 19th century.
The most famous of the churches belonging to this type was possibly the church of the Holy Apostles "Church of the Holy Apostles (Constantinople)"), which was also located in the city of Constantinople. The supports for the vaults were later also applied to churches built with a basilica plan, as is the case, for example, in the church of Saint Irene "Church of Saint Irene (Constantinople)"), also located in Constantinople, from the 19th century, in which the long nave "Nave (architecture)") of the church that makes up its body is covered by two domes adjacent to each other.
In the church of Saints Sergius and Bacchus "Church of Saints Sergius and Bacchus (Constantinople)") in Constantinople and in the church of Saint Vital in Ravenna, churches with a central plan, the space under the dome is expanded with the addition of the apses to the octagon.
Finally, in the church of Saint Sophia "Church of Saint Sophia (Constantinople)") in Constantinople, dating back to the 19th century, a combination was devised that very well represents an interesting and novel architectural project: the central square-shaped space on the side was increased to the side with the addition of two hemicycles on the east and west sides; These hemicycles were later expanded again by adding three smaller apses to the east side and another two to the west side.
This uninterrupted area, almost long and more than wide, was internally covered by a dome covering system. On the other hand, above the covers of the apsidioles rise two large semi-domes that in turn cover the hemicycles, behind which the large dome that is located above the central square emerges. The latter is supported on its north and south sides by two-plane roofs that give the entire complex a square external appearance.
In the church of the Holy Apostles of Thessaloniki "Church of the Holy Apostles (Thessaloniki)"), from the 19th century, on a cruciform "Plan (architecture)") five domes were arranged, the central one being the highest. No other church built after the century will be able to compete in grandeur with this work of Justinian I, and the plans of the churches will tend to be assimilated to a single type. A central area covered by the dome was inscribed in a square of a significantly larger size: the space on each of the sides clearly identified a nave "Nave (architecture)") and a transept. Sometimes the central space was square, although sometimes it was octagonal, or at least there were eight pilasters that supported the dome instead of just four, with a nave and transept of a proportionally smaller size.
If you draw a square and divide each of its sides into three parts, with the central part being somewhat larger, and based on the points obtained, you divide the area again, you will get an idea of a typical architectural project of this stage. Three apses developed from the points of the divisions on the east side, while a narrow entrance portico, the narthex, opened on the west façade. In front of this there was a square space, the atrium: sometimes there is a central fountain "Fountain (architecture)") under a baldachin supported by columns "Column (architecture)"). Just below the center of the dome was the pulpit, from which the Scriptures were proclaimed, with the choir "Choir (architecture)") of the singers being under the pulpit. On the east side of the central square was the iconostasis, to separate the bema, where the altar was located, from the body of the church. The bema was the area of the church that was reserved for the clergy and ministers, similar to the chancel "Channel (architecture)"). The altar was protected by a baldachin or ciborio "Ciborio (architecture)") supported on pilasters. Rows of seats framed the circumference of the apse, with the patriarch's throne at the central point to the east forming the synthronon (collective throne). The two minor sectors and the apsidioles next to the bema were the Pastoforia (prothesis and diaconicon). The pulpit and bema were adjacent to the solea, a step supported by the walls.
Influences from other styles
The continued influences of Eastern origin are evident in various aspects, such as in the exterior decoration of the walls "Wall (architecture)") of the churches built around the 19th century, in which the engraved bricks are arranged in an ornamental manner clearly inspired by Kufic writing. This was associated with the external arrangement of bricks and stones according to a wide variety of designs; This decorative use is probably of oriental origin, since similar decorations can be found in various buildings in Persia, in the so-called Medo-Persian architecture.
The domes and vaults were covered externally with lead or with Roman-type (flat) tiles. The door and window frames were made of marble. The interior surfaces of the buildings were completely decorated in their higher parts with mosaics or frescoes and in the lower part with coverings of marble slabs, of varied origins and colorations, arranged so that the different colorations formed a series of large panels. The highest quality marbles were cut so that the two surfaces obtained formed a symmetrical design similar to that of animal skin.
The bitter struggles for control of Armenia between Arabs and Byzantines caused many princes, nobles and soldiers to flee from Armenia, most of the time their destination was the Byzantine Empire. Migrations, accompanied by artists and various other types of people, would have influenced Byzantine architecture. The reverse influence seems unlikely, because Armenia, intolerant of Byzantium for reasons of religious faith, expelled all its dissidents from the country in the year 719. Given the circumstances, it seems difficult to think of any admiration for Byzantine architecture on the part of the Armenians.
In centuries and centuries, the necessary conditions for cultural and artistic flourishing did not exist in Armenia. However, the fortresses in which many Armenian princes had been forced to take refuge gave architects the possibility of acquiring knowledge for the construction of churches and convents dedicated to the memory of ancestors, where masses for the souls of the deceased were to be celebrated. A monument discovered at Ani (Türkiye) during archaeological excavations in 1910 had probably been built during those dark times. A part of the beautiful church of Otzoun dates back to 718, and a part of that of Banak belongs to the following century.
Later, the Arabs again allied themselves with the Armenians and, towards the beginning of the century, the architect Manuel built the famous |church on the island of Achtamar on Lake Van, the most notable work of this period. Over the centuries and various other churches were built, such as the church and convent of Narek, the church of the Savior in Taron, and various churches in Ashtarak, Mazra, Horomos, Noratouz, Dariounk, Oughouzli, Soth, Makenatzotz, Vanevan, Salnapat), Sevan, Keotran (near Yerevan), Taron (St. John the Baptist), Ishkhan, as well as the Shoghak convent"), all of them of interest due to the presence and richness of their decorations.
Featured Examples
Constantinople
As the capital "Capital (political)") of the Byzantine Empire and place of residence of the Byzantine emperors, as well as the seat of the Patriarch of Constantinople and the Orthodox Church, the city of Constantinople (modern Istanbul, in Turkey), concentrates a large number of temples, churches, cathedrals and other religious or civil buildings belonging to Byzantine architecture, and this throughout the three periods of said style, from its birth to the fall of Constantinople in 1453 in the hands of the Ottoman Empire.
The first work of Byzantine architecture, dating from the first third of the century, is the church of Saints Sergius and Bacchus, in Constantinople (527-536). It is a building with a central square plan "Plan (architecture)") with an octagon in the center, [Sc. 3] covered by a gallon dome on eight pillars and a nave in its surroundings.
The church is sometimes called little Hagia Sophia (although it is actually a few years older than Hagia Sophia), and has currently been transformed into a mosque. It is located in the current Eminönü neighborhood of Istanbul, not far from the Sea of Marmara, and from its narthex you can see that of the Hagia Sophia "Church of Hagia Sophia (Constantinople)"), and vice versa. At the time, it was one of the most important religious buildings in the city of Constantinople.
Due to the great resemblance to the church of Santa Sofia, it is suspected that the building project was the work of the same architects, Anthemius of Tralles and Isidore of Miletus, and that the building itself was actually nothing more than a kind of dress rehearsal for the future construction of the church of Santa Sofia.
The construction work on the building was carried out with the usual architectural techniques of the time and place, using bricks held with layers of mortar "Mortar (construction)"), giving them almost the same resistance capacity as that of the layers of bricks. The walls were reinforced by rings made of small stone blocks. The building, whose construction plan was consciously repeated in the church of San Vitale in Ravenna, has the shape of an octagon inscribed in an irregular square. It is covered by a 20 m high drum dome "Drum (architecture)"), which rests on eight columns. The narthex is on the west side.
Inside the building there is a beautiful two-story colonnade, which occupies the north side, and which contains an inscription made up of twelve Greek hexameters consecrated to Emperor Justinian I, his wife Theodora and Saint Sergius, who was the patron saint of soldiers in the Roman army. The lower floor has 16 columns, while the upper floor has a total of 18. Many of the column capitals still feature the monograms of Justinian and Theodora. In front of the building, there are some porticoes and a vestibule, already added under Ottoman rule, as well as the small garden, the well to supply water for ablutions and some merchant shops. To the north of the building is a small Muslim cemetery, as well as the old baptistery.
The rectangular church with two domes of Holy Peace or Saint Irene (in Greek Αγία Ειρήνη, Hagia Irene) corresponds to the same period as the previous one, the first half of the century, also in Constantinople, and which is currently used as a museum. It is located between the church of Saint Sophia "Church of Saint Sophia (Constantinople)") and the much later Topkapi Palace.
The first church of Saint Irene was built under the reign of Emperor Constantine I the Great in the 19th century, being the first of the churches in the city of Constantinople. It was the scene of particularly hurtful debates between Arians and Trinitarians "Trinity (Christianity)") within the framework of theological confrontations between the two. In fact, it was precisely in the church of Saint Irene where the second Ecumenical Council was held in 381. On the other hand, it was the seat of the Patriarchate of Constantinople before the church of Saint Sophia was built.
The early church was burned down in 532 during the Niká rebellion, [Sc. 3] so Justinian I had it rebuilt. Part of the vault, executed hastily, sank shortly afterwards, to which a fire was added in 564.[Sc. 3] After further destruction due to an earthquake in 740, Hagia Irene was largely rebuilt in the reign of Constantine V, [Sc. 4] So in its current form, the building that has survived to us corresponds to the century.
The church of Saint Irene constitutes a perfect example to illustrate the transition from churches with a basilica plan to a Greek cross plan inscribed in a square. Hagia Irene is the only one of the Byzantine-style churches whose original atrium has survived to us. The basilica, covered by a vault and equipped with two domes, culminates on its east side with three large windows with semicircular arches open in the apse. A large cross dominates the narthex, in the place where according to Byzantine architectural tradition the Theotokos was located, which constitutes a perfect example of iconoclasm.
After the fall of Constantinople in 1453, it was used as an arsenal "Arsenal (armament)") by the Janissaries, and was converted into a Turkish Museum in 1846. In 1875, due to lack of space, the artistic collection was moved to Topkapi Palace, the church being transformed into an Imperial Museum (Müze-i Hümayun) and then, in 1908, into a Military Museum for a certain time. Since 1973, the monument has been carefully restored and is used as a venue for classical music concerts due to its impressive artistic qualities, to the point that since 1980 the main concerts of the Istanbul Music Festival have been held in Hagia Irene. The Museum is not autonomous, but depends on the Hagia Sophia Museum.
But the crowning work of Byzantine architecture is the church of Saint Sophia "Church of Saint Sophia (Constantinople)") (Church of Divine Wisdom), dedicated to the Second Person of the Holy Trinity, built by the architects Anthemius of Tralles and Isidore of Miletus (both from Asia Minor, where the church built on a basilica plan with a dome predominated), [Sc. 5] between the years 532 and 537, following the direct orders of Emperor Justinian I. It is considered one of the "most beautiful and greatest architectural works of universal art", [Ar. 1] and Justinian intended "to erect a monument that, since the time of Adam, had not had an equal nor could ever have one."[Sc. 5].
It was built to replace a previous basilica, destroyed in the year 532, during the Niká rebellion in Constantinople. The church was solemnly consecrated in 537, although its original dome collapsed in 558. The one that replaced it, taller but smaller, suffered partial collapses in the 10th and 14th centuries. Nor is its narthex original, since it was restored after a fire in 564, while the vaults were restored in 740, after an earthquake. It still underwent a new alteration after the fall of Constantinople in 1453 and its conversion into a mosque, since its decoration was covered by stucco.[Ar. 1].
Its plan "Plan (architecture)") was of a new type, unknown until that time, the so-called domed basilica, although antecedents of it can be traced back to the 2nd century, a new plan that would become the characteristic of ecclesiastical constructions under Justinian. The invention of the new floor was possible precisely thanks to the use of brick as a construction element to replace stone, a characteristic that arrived in Byzantine architecture from Persian architecture and Mesopotamian architecture").[Ar. 1].
The dome of the building is superimposed on the church floor, without interrupting it with its support pillars. With a length of 72 x 71.7 m, it is rectangular, practically square. The rectangle is divided into three naves "Nave (architecture)") by rows of columns, with an access narthex and galleries in the side naves.[Ar. 2] the dome occupies the center of the main nave, 31 m in diameter and 54 m high, covered with special, lighter white tiles, manufactured in Rhodes.[Ar. 3].
To give greater amplitude to the dome, it is supported by two lateral half domes, which double the space covered by it, half domes that in turn are supported by spherical niches.[Ar. 3] In the north and south wings, there are two former arches that counteract the thrust force of the dome, rising above the columns of the stands and generating a large tympanum "Tympanum (architecture)") equipped with windows.[Ar. 3] In addition, the four large pillars existing at the base of the dome were reinforced with other pillars that are hidden in the side naves, while a set of vaults of different shapes and sizes contribute to dissipating the thrust of the large dome.[Ar. 3] However, the sensation from inside the temple is of a single dome, graceful and majestic, widely illuminated by the forty windows at its beginning.[Ar. 3].
The Byzantine historian Procopius of Caesarea stated about the dome of Hagia Sophia that "It does not seem to rest on a solid construction, but rather to be suspended from the sky by a gold chain and form like a canopy over the church."[Sc. 6].
Also important was the disappeared church of the Holy Apostles of Constantinople, planned as Constantine's mausoleum. Renovated during the time of Justinian I, it was a model for the Basilica of Saint John in Ephesus (completed ca. 565) and that of Saint Mark in Venice,[6] a work of the 19th century. Like the latter, it offered a model of a Greek cross with five domes, widely imitated throughout the Byzantine world.
The church was built on a hill in the city, designed to house the body of Emperor Constantine, [Ar. 4] Being the oldest in Christianity to be consecrated to the Holy Apostles, and dating from the times of the founding of the city of Constantinople itself on ancient Byzantium.
Justinian and his wife Theodora rebuilt it between 536-550,[6] taking up the well-known Greek cross plan of the Constantinian church, crowned by a large dome, which was later richly decorated by Justin II.
The church very soon became the imperial necropolis, thus containing the remains of most of the emperors, distributed in two exterior mausoleums, one to the north and the other to the south of the apse, called heroa, that of Constantine and that of Justinian. The interior of the church, however, did not house any tombs. Each of the heroon housed either modern or ancient tombs, without being grouped in any type of chronological order. Dethier, a scholar who lived in Constantinople and knew perfectly the topography of the medieval city, spoke of 19 sarcophagi in the heroon of Constantine and 17 for that of Justinian. Byzantios, a modern Greek writer, adds another five for the first and nine for the second.
The sanctuary received numerous relics: those of the holy apostles Andrew, Luke, Timothy "Timothy (saint)"), the first bishop of Ephesus, and Matthew, as well as those of the saints Cosmas and Damian "Cosmas and Damian (martyrs)").
Around the church were sumptuous porticos, the stoai, along which the isolated sarcophagi of some basileis were arranged. Apparently, all the sarcophagi were made of marble, completely covered with dazzling ornaments in silver and precious stones. The effect was one of grandeur, especially in the sunlight. Most of the sarcophagus covers were roof-shaped, and contained even more jewels inside. Various patriarchs were also buried there, notable among them was John Chrysostom.
The tombs were stripped by Alexius IV Angelo to pay the crusaders of the Fourth Crusade, who also looted the church, breaking and destroying the tombs. What remained was razed by the dervishes after the fall of Constantinople in 1453, who apparently spent fourteen hours destroying with clubs and iron bars what had been saved from the destruction caused by the crusaders.
Italy
The Italian peninsula was widely linked to the Byzantine Empire, which established the city of Ravenna as the capital of one of its exarchates, while controlling large parts of the peninsula, incorporated into its empire at the risk of war and political events.
On the other hand, the prestige inherent to Byzantine architecture deeply marked the buildings in other parts of the peninsula or Sicily, radiating its influences from there to the rest of Western Europe.
Constantinople was not the only important focus in this first Golden Age of Byzantium, it is necessary to remember the nucleus of Ravenna (capital of the Byzantine Empire in the West from the century to the century), the western exarchate located in the northeast of the Italian peninsula, on the shores of the Adriatic Sea, next to Venice. Furthermore, Ravenna was a naval base of the Roman Navy, which allowed it control of the Adriatic.[Sc. 7].
The Byzantine churches of Ravenna present two models: one of clear Constantinopolitan inspiration related to the church of Saints Sergius and Bacchus, that of the church of San Vital in Ravenna (538-547), [Sc. 8] in which, like its model, it has an octagonal plan with a surrounding nave between the high pillars and with a semicircular extension in the head, in front of the apse of the presbytery "Presbytery (architecture)"); At the foot it has a wide atrium with side towers.
In this church of San Vital the most characteristic features of the stylistics in Western medieval architecture are already prefigured, especially in those that refer to the vertical direction of the construction to the detriment of the preceding horizontality.
The other Byzantine churches in Ravenna have Early Christian influence due to their basilica structure with a flat roof. They are the basilica of San Apolinar in Classe and the church of San Apolinar Nuevo, both from the first half of the century and with outstanding mosaics. Other monuments must also be added to the churches, such as the mausoleum of Gala Placidia.
The Mausoleum of Gala Placidia (it is known as this, although it is actually the chapel of San Lorenzo) was erected by order of Gala Placidia, the widow of Constantius III and regent of the Roman Empire on behalf of her son Valentinian III, upon her return to Italy after the death of her husband, so it can be deduced that it is very shortly after 421, the date of Constantius's death.[Sc. 9] Some claim that it is the mausoleum of Gala Placidia herself, but documentary sources indicate that she died and was buried in Rome, although her remains currently rest in Ravenna, in the very nearby church of San Vitale.
The chapel (or mausoleum) is built on a Greek cross plan, the first time this type of plan was used in Western architecture, and is adjacent to a basilica that also has a Greek cross plan.
The exterior appearance of the building, 15 m long by 13 m wide, highlights the use of brick, with which the walls were raised, equipped with blind arches and small windows.[Sc. 9] The roof "Roof (construction)") of the building is based on (flat Roman tile), pouring with four waters in the dome and two waters in the rest of the building.
Russia
In the Second Golden Age, Byzantine art spread to the Russian area of Armenia, in kyiv the church of Saint Sophia "Church of Saint Sophia (kyiv)") was built in the year 1017, faithfully following the influence of the architecture of Constantinople, it was structured in a basilica form with five naves "Nave (architecture)") ending in apses, in Novgorod the churches of Saint George and of Santa Sofia, both with a central floor. It must be kept in mind that the current Ukraine and Russia had converted to Christianity through the action of missionaries of Bulgarian origin belonging to the Orthodox Church. To this must be added the marriage that occurred in 989 between Prince Vladimir I of kyiv and Princess Anne, sister of Emperor Basil II.[Sc. 20].
During the Third Golden Age, between the 13th and 15th centuries, Byzantine art continued to spread throughout Europe and Russia, with church floors predominating, covered by bulging domes "Bulb (botany)") on circular or polygonal "Drum (architecture)" drums. The church of the Holy Apostles of Thessaloniki "Church of the Holy Apostles (Thessaloniki)"), from the 16th century, the church of Mystras"), in the Peloponnese, and some monasteries on Mount Athos correspond to this stage in Greece.
Likewise, Byzantine temples are multiplying in the Danube valleys, in Romania and Bulgaria, reaching the Russian lands of Moscow where the Saint Basil's Cathedral stands out, in Moscow's Red Square, built in the time of Ivan the Terrible (1555-1561), whose five domes, the tallest and slenderest in the transept and another four located in the angles that form the arms of the cross, stand out for their color, for the high drums and for its characteristic artistic profiles.
The heritage of Byzantine architecture
The very connection of Byzantine art with the Byzantine Empire and with the ceremonial and imperial pageantry, added to the legitimation granted by the Orthodox faith, facilitated the expansion of Byzantine art in geographical areas linked to Orthodoxy, especially in the territories of present-day Ukraine, Belarus and Russia.[Sc. 21].
After Orthodoxy and Byzantine art had been consolidated in the Russian lands (for example, entire neighborhoods of Constantinople were copied in kyiv), the fall of Constantinople in 1453, with the emigration that the process entailed, caused the Russian Empire to emerge as the natural heir of Byzantium, assuming as an inherent part of said inheritance the basic elements of Byzantine art.[Sc. 21].
On the other hand, Byzantine architecture opened the door in Western Europe to Romanesque architecture and Gothic architecture. In the East it also had a profound influence on Islamic architecture, with notable examples such as the Umayyad mosque in Damascus and the Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem, which highlight in their decorations the work of Byzantine craftsmen and mosaic builders. In Bulgaria, Russia, Romania, Georgia and other countries of Orthodox faith, Byzantine architecture continued in force for much longer, giving rise to various local architectural schools.
In the 19th century, parallel to the revival of Gothic art that gave rise to neo-Gothic architecture, neo-Byzantine architecture also developed, which inspired architectural gems such as Westminster Cathedral in London. In Bristol, between 1850 and 1880, a style known as Bristol Byzantine was generated, becoming popular thanks to the industrial buildings that combined Byzantine elements with others from the Mudejar architectural style. It was developed on a large scale in Russia by Konstantin Thon and his disciples, who designed the Cathedral of St. Vladimir "Cathedral of St. Vladimir (kyiv)") in kyiv, the Cathedral of St. Nicholas&action=edit&redlink=1 "Cathedral of St. Nicholas (St. Petersburg) (not yet drafted)") in St. Petersburg, the Cathedral of Alexander Nevsky in Sofia and the New Athos Monastery near Sukhumi. The largest Neo-Byzantine project of the century was the temple of Saint Sava in Belgrade, still unfinished.
Byzantine architecture in Spain
In Spain, Byzantine architecture had little presence. Its greatest representation is in the province of Zamora, first in its capital, with the dome of the Zamora cathedral from 1174, in the reign of Alfonso VII, and the dome of the collegiate church of Santa María la Mayor "Colegiata de Santa María la Mayor (Toro)") in the city of Toro "Toro (Spain)"); Furthermore, in Castilla y León there is the dome of the old cathedral of Salamanca from 1236, and in Extremadura the old cathedral of Plasencia, models based on the cathedral of Zamora, which was the first of the churches that now make up the group of Leonese domes.
Minor examples can also be found linked to the military presence of the Byzantine Empire in some brief periods of the centuries and in the southeast of the peninsula. Thus, for example, the Byzantine wall of Cartagena "Cartagena (Spain)").[7].
Some of the elements of Byzantine architecture, especially adopted from examples in Syria and other parts of the Middle East, arrived in Spain through Islamic architecture.
Grades
Glossary:.
References
[9] ↑ Trompa: arco diagonal tendido en chaflán en cada uno de los cuatro ángulos de una torre cuadrada. Los cuatro arcos soportan pequeños muros que transforman el cuadrado en un octágono.
[10] ↑ Nave lateral: nave en los lados de la nave central de una iglesia, generalmente de menor altura que la nave principal. A veces se llaman pasillos. Y también colaterales cuando su altura es igual a la de la nave principal.
[22] ↑ Capitel bizantino: capitel en forma de pirámide truncada e invertido en la punta, decorado con follajes o motivos geométricos..
[23] ↑ Tribuna: en las iglesias, una galería alta que corre sobre las naves laterales. Glossaire, p. 426.
[26] ↑ Ábside: extremo de la nave central de la basílica en forma de semicírculo, abovedado en forma de concha.
[33] ↑ Cristo Pantocrátor: literalmente, «Cristo, señor del mundo»; generalmente figurado en la cima interior de las cúpulas de las iglesias bizantinas por una efigie de proporciones gigantescas. Glossaire, p. 340.
[35] ↑ Tambor: un muro cilíndrico (o poligonal) que sostiene, en su base, un domo o una cúpula.
[43] ↑ bóvedas de arista: en la bóveda de arista, la abertura de dos bóvedas de cañón continúa sin que se interrumpan mutuamente y los paños de las bóvedas que quedan después de la penetración se cruzan de acuerdo con las aristas vivas que forman una cruz de San Andrés, la misma que correspondía a las ángulos reentrantes de la bóveda precedente.
[48] ↑ Ménsula: fuerte saliente de piedra, madera o hierro sobre la plomada de un paramento, destinada a soportar varios objetos: vigas, cornisas, arcos, etc.).
[49] ↑ Dentículo: motivo ornamental. Yuxtaposición de pequeños recortes rectangulares tallados en una cornisa y separados por huecos de un ancho igual a la mitad del ancho de un dentículo y designados por el nombre de metátomas.
Some of the distinctive characteristics of Byzantine architecture are, in addition to the already indicated shape of the domes, the use of brick as a construction material to replace stone, the massive use of mosaics as a decorative element to replace sculptures, the greater elevation of the buildings as a result of the elevation of the domes, and the discovery of a system that allows combining the constructive use for said domes, of a support with a square "Plan (architecture)"), but that allows the finishing by a drum "Drum (architecture)") in a round dome, often with an extension of a wavy eaves "Roof (construction)").
Periods
Contenido
El largo período de tiempo abarcado por la arquitectura bizantina suele dividirse en tres subperíodos claramente diferenciados:.
Primitive period (527-843)
Originally, Byzantine architecture was just an extension of ancient Roman architecture. During the Late Empire, the expansion of Christianity had led to the development of early Christian architecture, with the construction of churches whose floor plans—derived from those of pagan temples and especially Roman civil basilicas that had been converted into places of worship—gradually adopted forms more suitable for Christian worship. monastics; but in parallel an architecture was developed in which the central plan, in the shape of a rotunda or a Greek cross, gradually replaced the longitudinal development.[Ma. 1] Bricks, as a construction material, were used more than carved stone, the arrangement of the columns became freer. Figurative mosaics with a gold background became the essential element of the interior decoration, particularly of the vaults and domes. sought to completely eliminate the wooden carpentry coverings, which naturally led to the abandonment of the basilica plan, which was replaced by plans resulting from sets of domes and half-domes that became increasingly complex.[Ma. 2] After the great crisis of late Antiquity, which saw the fall of the Western Roman Empire, the century was a very fruitful period of renewal and experimentation in the architectural domain of the Eastern Roman Empire, which then reached its peak. coexistence of a great diversity of plants, which were sometimes combined in complex ways. The emperors Justin I (r. 518-527) and Justinian (r. 527-565) were two great builders of both their religious buildings (churches) and civil buildings (fortresses, palaces, public buildings, markets, aqueducts).[Ka. 1] It was the past greatness of Roman civilization that was truly reborn for a time in Constantinople.
Many of the monuments of this early architectural period have now disappeared. The most representative examples that survive were erected during the reign of Emperor Justinian and are found in Ravenna and Constantinople. At that time a decisive progress was made in the history of architecture when the architects Anthemius of Trales and Isidore of Miletus discovered how to suspend a large circular dome over a square space using the pendentive technique, a particularly elegant method, both geometrically and aesthetically. It allowed the large domes to rest on four thick pillars. Certainly some experiments had already taken place both in the West and in the East on the use of a dome to cover square, rectangular or cruciform buildings, but in the Basilica of Hagia Sophia "Basilica of Hagia Sophia (Constantinople)") perfection was reached and the dome became a symbol of Byzantine architecture.[Ma. 3][1] In churches with smaller domes the pendentives were replaced by horns "Trumpet (architecture)").[Gl. 1].
The plan of Hagia Sophia (which means 'Holy Wisdom', from the Greek Hagia Sophia) is an original synthesis of two types of plan: the central one, in the shape of a square crowned by a dome and surrounded by apses and absidioles; and the longitudinal (basilical), which allows the central nave to be expanded, also bordered by side naves. Despite its complexity, it turned out to be a solution of great unity and harmony, making this basilica one of the most admired masterpieces in the history of architecture. Although the church is dominated by its enormous central dome, its floor plan preserves that of a basilica with a central nave and side naves[Gl. 2] separated by two colonnades that border the nave; but here the rows of traditional columns are modified by the insertion of four large pillars that serve as support for the pendentives that support the dome.
The square plan of the central part of the nave is compressed in length by two enormous apses of the same width as the central square of the nave (). The semicircular plan of these apses is itself expanded with two smaller apses on its sides. These apsidioles are carried in their center by two columns in red porphyry (more striking) that separate them from the side naves and thus pursue the colonnades that border the nave beyond the large pillars. The large pillars are even decorated with false columns in porphyry or green marble depending on the sides. All of these devices manage to create a kind of large nave, twice as long as it is wide, and to free up in the church a gigantic interior volume devoid of any structure, unmatched until then, covered by the large dome in the center and flanked by several semi-domes. Furthermore, the technique of the pendentives resting on the pillars made the high side walls structurally unnecessary (they do not support loads), which made it possible to insert the side colonnades on two levels (including a floor for the stands) and open the walls above the stands to majestically illuminate the interior through a multitude of windows on two additional levels, to which is added the crown of forty windows that the architects knew how to create in the dome. The church is as luminous as the first early Christian basilicas that only supported wooden carpentry, and the effect is surprising.
The church of the Holy Apostles of Constantinople, also built under Justinian and now disappeared, constituted another attempt to merge floors, deploying a much simpler solution but one that gave less unity to the interior volume: it was a Greek cross composed of five juxtaposed square spaces, with pillars in its corners that supported the pendentives that supported five domes of identical diameters. This resulted in a long nave bordered by pillars that support three domes in a row; This nave was crossed by a transept of the same size and design as the central nave.[Ta. 1] This church has been destroyed today, but St. Mark's Basilica in Venice, which will be analyzed later, constitutes a kind of replica built five centuries later.
In Ravenna, the central-plan basilica of San Vitale (San Vitale), built in the 19th century,[2] and the Basilica of San Apolinar Nuovo, built at the beginning of the century by Theodoric the Great, are two of the best preserved and harmonious examples of a traditional basilica plan. In Constantinople, in addition to the Basilica of the Holy Wisdom (Hagia Sophia), the Basilica of Saint Irene "Church of Saint Irene (Constantinople)") was built in the reign of Justinian, near the Basilica of Saints Sergius and Bacchus "Church of Saints Sergius and Bacchus (Constantinople)") (also called "small Hagia Sophia"), built between 527 and 536[Ma. 6] and it is said that it served as a model for the first two, because in it there is also a combination of distinctive characteristics of longitudinal and centralized churches.[N 1].
From the same period, among the buildings not dedicated to worship, the Great Palace of Constantinople stands out, now in ruins,[3] as well as the Theodosian Wall (probably started under Theodosius II), which with its twenty kilometers in length and its imposing towers, today is one of the main tourist attractions of the city, in addition to allowing it to resist all its enemies for more than a thousand years. Mention should also be made of another building initiated under Justinian in the 530s, the “Submerged Palace” (in Turkish, Yerebatan Sarayī), which served multiple purposes and housed an underground tank adorned with 28 rows of 12 columns each supporting brick vaults.[Ma. 8] In addition to the "Justinian Aqueduct", you can still admire the monumental bridge that allows you to cross the Sangarius River (today Sakarya) dating from the 1st century, as well as the bridge over the Karamagara"), a century-old vaulted bridge or a single arch long and high in eastern Turkey.[Ma. 9].
In the other countries of the empire, mention should be made of the church of Hagios Demetrios of Thessaloniki "Church of Saint Demetrius (Thessaloniki)"), the fortified convent of Saint Catherine of Sinai and the monastery of Djvari (17th century) in modern Georgia, as well as the three churches of the great monastic complex of Echmiadzin, seat of the Catholicos of Armenia.[Ta. 2]
All of these buildings have some characteristics in common. Firstly, a series of ancient traditions can be seen evolving in the century, such as the Corinthian capitals with complicated volutes that became the imposted capital or Byzantine capital.[Gl. 3] These capitals are quite varied in their shapes and decorations, but the most characteristic is the pyramidal type with delicate foliage or carved geometric motifs, as if it were a layer of lace that gives the illusion of housing such an airy network inside or in a vacuum. Smooth columns without grooves appear lighter. The heavy entablatures of classical architecture have definitively disappeared or been reduced to friezes, just as the large architraves, which gave a monumental character to ancient classical architecture, were replaced by semicircular arches, both lighter and more efficient. When the covering is of masonry, it is secured almost everywhere by smooth, rounded vaults or domes instead of coffered ceilings. Mosaic floors tend to be replaced by marble pavements with rounded and geometric motifs derived from the ancient opus sectile. In large church halls, columns often support a floor of tribunes[Gl. 4] and not just the roof. In general, architecture seeks to elevate and dematerialize, pursues abstraction, isolating itself from a concrete and terrestrial context: mosaics with a golden background play an important role in reinforcing this effect. On a historical level, it can be said that the Byzantine architecture of the century represents the apogee and completion of a long process of development of early Christian architecture, in which architects explored new forms and maximized the technical possibilities they had, [Ma. 10] but it was also the first important milestone of medieval Christian architecture, establishing principles, ideals and research that would be developed in other forms of architecture and find other solutions throughout the Middle Ages.
Intermediate period (843-1204)
The fruitful and innovative period of Justinian was followed by two centuries of lethargy marked by the Slavic invasions in the Balkans, the wars with Persia") and the siege of Constantinople in 626 "Siege of Constantinople (626)"), the rise of the Arabs and Islam, the definitive loss of Palestine "Palestine (region)"), Syria and Egypt in the years 630-640, the conquest of North Africa by the Arabs who besieged Constantinople again in 674-678 "Siege of Constantinople (674-678)") and 717-718 "Siege of Constantinople (717-718)"). During those two centuries, religious architecture stagnated, a result of the iconoclastic crisis during which images were removed from existing temples without building new ones. civil wars and the decline of cities. During that time the main focus was to repair or maintain existing buildings.[Ma. 11][Ka. 1] These two centuries form a kind of hinge that could be classified in this period or the previous one.
They will be included here in the intervening period, because it was probably in the century when the first inscribed cross churches were built, a plan still used in the Orthodox Church. This type of church, generally quite small, is centered around a naos "Naos (architecture)") (the Holy of Holies) divided into nine bays by four columns supporting a dome. To the west is the narthex (entrance hall) and to the east the bêma (generally elevated sanctuary where the altar is located protected by a canopy, resting on pillars, called ciborium "Ciborium (architecture)")), previously separated by a screen from the naos, currently replaced by an iconostasis (wall on which the icons are arranged). Directly below the main dome is the ambo (elevated pulpit from which the Scriptures were read), and at the foot of the ambo, the space reserved for the choir of singers. Around the apse, [Gl. 5] the clergy had their place on steps of stairs that surrounded the throne of the patriarch (the synthronon). On each side of the bêma there were two small sacristies, the diaconicon (altar for the treasure, liturgical vestments and sacred texts) and the prothesis (altar for the preparation of communion).[4].
These churches, with their almost square shape, unlike longitudinal or axial type churches, wanted to represent the hierarchy of the cosmos in their architecture. Starting from the highest part, the dome, the gaze descends over the vaults that protrude from the bêma and the apses, before joining the walls. This hierarchy was made tangible by the marble cornices that separated each of the three components: at the top, in the dome, there was a mosaic representing Christ and below, another representing the Virgin in the semi-dome of the apse; and on the third and final level, angels, prophets, apostles, church fathers and other saints appeared, while the walls illustrated various festivities of the liturgical calendar.[Ma. 12].
Late period (1204-1453)
The final period or Third Golden Age covers the period of time between the centuries and , coinciding with the government of the dynasties of the Komneni and the Paleologues.
Already in the 2nd century, the Byzantine Empire began to crumble: the thema of Cyprus was separated in 1185 and four years later Theodore Mangafas became lord of Philadelphia "Philadelphia (Turkey)"). The fall of Constantinople in 1204 only accelerated that trend, as the empire of Nicaea and the empire of Trebizond, the despotate of Epirus (with capital at Arta), the principality of Morea (with capital at Mistra), and several Latin principalities were formed. The architecture of this period followed the evolution of the political influences exerted on those territories (Georgians and Turks for the empire of Trebizond; Franks and Slavs for the despotate of Epirus; Venetians and Genoese for the great commercial centers), as well as religious: Catholic Church and Islam. Whether in the construction of castles or fortresses or churches, the Gothic style began to penetrate this region of the world.[Ma. 19].
The Latin occupation (1204-1261) also marked the end of Constantinople's influence on the development of architecture. New centers appeared such as Nicaea, Trebizond and Arta. After the reconquest of Constantinople, new buildings, mainly churches, monasteries and palaces, will see the light, but this new momentum will be quickly slowed down by the civil wars of the 1320s and 1340s. Many craftsmen will leave the capital to settle in other places and thereby give a boost to local architecture (Mesembria, Skopje, Bursa).[Ka. 3].
The despotate of Epirof is probably the most dynamic architecturally, with many monuments associated with the reigning family. Two of the main buildings of this period are the monastery of Katô Panagia, near Arta, built by the despot Michael II between 1231 and 1271, and the basilica of Porta Panagia, near Trikkala, erected in 1283 by John I Ducas, son of Michael II. These two buildings have "groin vaults".[Gl. 8] Widely spread in Greece since the 19th century, this church plan with three naves resembles that of the inscribed cross, but without a dome. The masterpiece of the Epirote school, however, remains the Church of the Parigoritissa "Church of the Panagia Parigoritissa (Arta)"), erected in 1290 by the despot Nikephoros I Comnenus Doukas. It is an almost square building with three floors. Octagonal in type, the central dome is supported by eight pillars; four smaller domes adorn each corner of the flat roof.[Ma. 20][Ka. 4].
In Constantinople itself and in Asia Minor, the architecture of the Comenian period was practically non-existent, with the exception of Elmali Kilise"), a rock-cut church, built around 1050 in central Cappadocia and comprising four irregular pillars forming a Greek cross and supporting a dome,[Ta. 5] as well as the churches of the (today known as ) and the (Virgin of the Throne, today known as ) of Constantinople.
Characteristics
La arquitectura bizantina mantuvo varios elementos de la arquitectura romana y de la paleocristiana oriental, como los materiales (ladrillo y piedra para revestimientos exteriores e interiores de mosaico), arquerías de medio punto, columna "Columna (arquitectura)") clásica como soporte, etc. Pero también aportaron nuevos rasgos entre los que destaca la nueva concepción dinámica de los elementos y un novedoso sentido espacial y, sobre todo, su aportación más importante, el empleo sistemático de la cubierta "Cubierta (construcción)") abovedada, especialmente la cúpula sobre pechinas, es decir, triángulos esféricos en los ángulos que facilitan el paso de la planta "Planta (arquitectura)") cuadrada a la circular de la cúpula. Estas bóvedas semiesféricas se construían mediante hiladas concéntricas de ladrillo, a modo de coronas de radio decreciente reforzadas exteriormente con mortero "Mortero (construcción)"), y eran concebidas como una imagen simbólica del cosmos divino.
Otra aportación de gran transcendencia fue la decoración de capiteles, de los que hubo varios tipos; así, el de tipo teodosiano es una herencia romana, empleado durante el siglo como evolución del corintio y tallado a trépano, semejando a avisperos; otra variedad fue el capitel cúbico de caras planas decorado con relieves a dos planos. En uno y otro caso era obligada la colocación sobre ellos de un cimacio o pieza troncopiramidal decorada con diversos motivos y símbolos cristianos.
En la tipología de los templos, según la planta, abundan los de planta centralizada, sin duda concordante con la importancia que se concede a la cúpula, pero no son inferiores en número las iglesias de planta basilical y las cruciformes con los tramos iguales (planta de cruz griega).
En casi todos los casos es frecuente que los templos, además del cuerpo de nave principal, posea un atrio o nártex, de origen
paleocristiano, y el presbiterio "Presbiterio (arquitectura)") precedido de iconostasio, llamada así porque sobre este
cerramiento calado se colocaban los iconos pintados.
Structural evolution
In the early days of the first period of Byzantine architecture, the construction of churches in the regions of Palestine "Palestine (region)") and Syria at the time of Emperor Constantine II "Constantine II (emperor)") were made according to two different models of the plan "Plan (architecture)") of the building: the basilical or axial plan, as for example happens in the church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem, and the circular or central plan, as is the case of the now lost great church octagonal that existed in Antioch.
It must be assumed that churches with a central plan almost always had a vaulted roof, since the existence of a central dome was their true reason for existence. The central space was surrounded by a very thick wall, in which deep holes appeared on the inside, as in the church of Saint George "Church of Saint George (Thessaloniki)") in Thessaloniki (19th century), or by an ambulatory with a barrel vault, as is the case in the mausoleum of Saint Constance in Rome (20th century).
The deep openings existing in the central space would thus form the arms of a cross, thus contributing to the support of the central vault of the building, as happens, for example, in the case of the Mausoleum of Gala Placidia in Ravenna, dating from the 19th century.
The most famous of the churches belonging to this type was possibly the church of the Holy Apostles "Church of the Holy Apostles (Constantinople)"), which was also located in the city of Constantinople. The supports for the vaults were later also applied to churches built with a basilica plan, as is the case, for example, in the church of Saint Irene "Church of Saint Irene (Constantinople)"), also located in Constantinople, from the 19th century, in which the long nave "Nave (architecture)") of the church that makes up its body is covered by two domes adjacent to each other.
In the church of Saints Sergius and Bacchus "Church of Saints Sergius and Bacchus (Constantinople)") in Constantinople and in the church of Saint Vital in Ravenna, churches with a central plan, the space under the dome is expanded with the addition of the apses to the octagon.
Finally, in the church of Saint Sophia "Church of Saint Sophia (Constantinople)") in Constantinople, dating back to the 19th century, a combination was devised that very well represents an interesting and novel architectural project: the central square-shaped space on the side was increased to the side with the addition of two hemicycles on the east and west sides; These hemicycles were later expanded again by adding three smaller apses to the east side and another two to the west side.
This uninterrupted area, almost long and more than wide, was internally covered by a dome covering system. On the other hand, above the covers of the apsidioles rise two large semi-domes that in turn cover the hemicycles, behind which the large dome that is located above the central square emerges. The latter is supported on its north and south sides by two-plane roofs that give the entire complex a square external appearance.
In the church of the Holy Apostles of Thessaloniki "Church of the Holy Apostles (Thessaloniki)"), from the 19th century, on a cruciform "Plan (architecture)") five domes were arranged, the central one being the highest. No other church built after the century will be able to compete in grandeur with this work of Justinian I, and the plans of the churches will tend to be assimilated to a single type. A central area covered by the dome was inscribed in a square of a significantly larger size: the space on each of the sides clearly identified a nave "Nave (architecture)") and a transept. Sometimes the central space was square, although sometimes it was octagonal, or at least there were eight pilasters that supported the dome instead of just four, with a nave and transept of a proportionally smaller size.
If you draw a square and divide each of its sides into three parts, with the central part being somewhat larger, and based on the points obtained, you divide the area again, you will get an idea of a typical architectural project of this stage. Three apses developed from the points of the divisions on the east side, while a narrow entrance portico, the narthex, opened on the west façade. In front of this there was a square space, the atrium: sometimes there is a central fountain "Fountain (architecture)") under a baldachin supported by columns "Column (architecture)"). Just below the center of the dome was the pulpit, from which the Scriptures were proclaimed, with the choir "Choir (architecture)") of the singers being under the pulpit. On the east side of the central square was the iconostasis, to separate the bema, where the altar was located, from the body of the church. The bema was the area of the church that was reserved for the clergy and ministers, similar to the chancel "Channel (architecture)"). The altar was protected by a baldachin or ciborio "Ciborio (architecture)") supported on pilasters. Rows of seats framed the circumference of the apse, with the patriarch's throne at the central point to the east forming the synthronon (collective throne). The two minor sectors and the apsidioles next to the bema were the Pastoforia (prothesis and diaconicon). The pulpit and bema were adjacent to the solea, a step supported by the walls.
Influences from other styles
The continued influences of Eastern origin are evident in various aspects, such as in the exterior decoration of the walls "Wall (architecture)") of the churches built around the 19th century, in which the engraved bricks are arranged in an ornamental manner clearly inspired by Kufic writing. This was associated with the external arrangement of bricks and stones according to a wide variety of designs; This decorative use is probably of oriental origin, since similar decorations can be found in various buildings in Persia, in the so-called Medo-Persian architecture.
The domes and vaults were covered externally with lead or with Roman-type (flat) tiles. The door and window frames were made of marble. The interior surfaces of the buildings were completely decorated in their higher parts with mosaics or frescoes and in the lower part with coverings of marble slabs, of varied origins and colorations, arranged so that the different colorations formed a series of large panels. The highest quality marbles were cut so that the two surfaces obtained formed a symmetrical design similar to that of animal skin.
The bitter struggles for control of Armenia between Arabs and Byzantines caused many princes, nobles and soldiers to flee from Armenia, most of the time their destination was the Byzantine Empire. Migrations, accompanied by artists and various other types of people, would have influenced Byzantine architecture. The reverse influence seems unlikely, because Armenia, intolerant of Byzantium for reasons of religious faith, expelled all its dissidents from the country in the year 719. Given the circumstances, it seems difficult to think of any admiration for Byzantine architecture on the part of the Armenians.
In centuries and centuries, the necessary conditions for cultural and artistic flourishing did not exist in Armenia. However, the fortresses in which many Armenian princes had been forced to take refuge gave architects the possibility of acquiring knowledge for the construction of churches and convents dedicated to the memory of ancestors, where masses for the souls of the deceased were to be celebrated. A monument discovered at Ani (Türkiye) during archaeological excavations in 1910 had probably been built during those dark times. A part of the beautiful church of Otzoun dates back to 718, and a part of that of Banak belongs to the following century.
Later, the Arabs again allied themselves with the Armenians and, towards the beginning of the century, the architect Manuel built the famous |church on the island of Achtamar on Lake Van, the most notable work of this period. Over the centuries and various other churches were built, such as the church and convent of Narek, the church of the Savior in Taron, and various churches in Ashtarak, Mazra, Horomos, Noratouz, Dariounk, Oughouzli, Soth, Makenatzotz, Vanevan, Salnapat), Sevan, Keotran (near Yerevan), Taron (St. John the Baptist), Ishkhan, as well as the Shoghak convent"), all of them of interest due to the presence and richness of their decorations.
Featured Examples
Constantinople
As the capital "Capital (political)") of the Byzantine Empire and place of residence of the Byzantine emperors, as well as the seat of the Patriarch of Constantinople and the Orthodox Church, the city of Constantinople (modern Istanbul, in Turkey), concentrates a large number of temples, churches, cathedrals and other religious or civil buildings belonging to Byzantine architecture, and this throughout the three periods of said style, from its birth to the fall of Constantinople in 1453 in the hands of the Ottoman Empire.
The first work of Byzantine architecture, dating from the first third of the century, is the church of Saints Sergius and Bacchus, in Constantinople (527-536). It is a building with a central square plan "Plan (architecture)") with an octagon in the center, [Sc. 3] covered by a gallon dome on eight pillars and a nave in its surroundings.
The church is sometimes called little Hagia Sophia (although it is actually a few years older than Hagia Sophia), and has currently been transformed into a mosque. It is located in the current Eminönü neighborhood of Istanbul, not far from the Sea of Marmara, and from its narthex you can see that of the Hagia Sophia "Church of Hagia Sophia (Constantinople)"), and vice versa. At the time, it was one of the most important religious buildings in the city of Constantinople.
Due to the great resemblance to the church of Santa Sofia, it is suspected that the building project was the work of the same architects, Anthemius of Tralles and Isidore of Miletus, and that the building itself was actually nothing more than a kind of dress rehearsal for the future construction of the church of Santa Sofia.
The construction work on the building was carried out with the usual architectural techniques of the time and place, using bricks held with layers of mortar "Mortar (construction)"), giving them almost the same resistance capacity as that of the layers of bricks. The walls were reinforced by rings made of small stone blocks. The building, whose construction plan was consciously repeated in the church of San Vitale in Ravenna, has the shape of an octagon inscribed in an irregular square. It is covered by a 20 m high drum dome "Drum (architecture)"), which rests on eight columns. The narthex is on the west side.
Inside the building there is a beautiful two-story colonnade, which occupies the north side, and which contains an inscription made up of twelve Greek hexameters consecrated to Emperor Justinian I, his wife Theodora and Saint Sergius, who was the patron saint of soldiers in the Roman army. The lower floor has 16 columns, while the upper floor has a total of 18. Many of the column capitals still feature the monograms of Justinian and Theodora. In front of the building, there are some porticoes and a vestibule, already added under Ottoman rule, as well as the small garden, the well to supply water for ablutions and some merchant shops. To the north of the building is a small Muslim cemetery, as well as the old baptistery.
The rectangular church with two domes of Holy Peace or Saint Irene (in Greek Αγία Ειρήνη, Hagia Irene) corresponds to the same period as the previous one, the first half of the century, also in Constantinople, and which is currently used as a museum. It is located between the church of Saint Sophia "Church of Saint Sophia (Constantinople)") and the much later Topkapi Palace.
The first church of Saint Irene was built under the reign of Emperor Constantine I the Great in the 19th century, being the first of the churches in the city of Constantinople. It was the scene of particularly hurtful debates between Arians and Trinitarians "Trinity (Christianity)") within the framework of theological confrontations between the two. In fact, it was precisely in the church of Saint Irene where the second Ecumenical Council was held in 381. On the other hand, it was the seat of the Patriarchate of Constantinople before the church of Saint Sophia was built.
The early church was burned down in 532 during the Niká rebellion, [Sc. 3] so Justinian I had it rebuilt. Part of the vault, executed hastily, sank shortly afterwards, to which a fire was added in 564.[Sc. 3] After further destruction due to an earthquake in 740, Hagia Irene was largely rebuilt in the reign of Constantine V, [Sc. 4] So in its current form, the building that has survived to us corresponds to the century.
The church of Saint Irene constitutes a perfect example to illustrate the transition from churches with a basilica plan to a Greek cross plan inscribed in a square. Hagia Irene is the only one of the Byzantine-style churches whose original atrium has survived to us. The basilica, covered by a vault and equipped with two domes, culminates on its east side with three large windows with semicircular arches open in the apse. A large cross dominates the narthex, in the place where according to Byzantine architectural tradition the Theotokos was located, which constitutes a perfect example of iconoclasm.
After the fall of Constantinople in 1453, it was used as an arsenal "Arsenal (armament)") by the Janissaries, and was converted into a Turkish Museum in 1846. In 1875, due to lack of space, the artistic collection was moved to Topkapi Palace, the church being transformed into an Imperial Museum (Müze-i Hümayun) and then, in 1908, into a Military Museum for a certain time. Since 1973, the monument has been carefully restored and is used as a venue for classical music concerts due to its impressive artistic qualities, to the point that since 1980 the main concerts of the Istanbul Music Festival have been held in Hagia Irene. The Museum is not autonomous, but depends on the Hagia Sophia Museum.
But the crowning work of Byzantine architecture is the church of Saint Sophia "Church of Saint Sophia (Constantinople)") (Church of Divine Wisdom), dedicated to the Second Person of the Holy Trinity, built by the architects Anthemius of Tralles and Isidore of Miletus (both from Asia Minor, where the church built on a basilica plan with a dome predominated), [Sc. 5] between the years 532 and 537, following the direct orders of Emperor Justinian I. It is considered one of the "most beautiful and greatest architectural works of universal art", [Ar. 1] and Justinian intended "to erect a monument that, since the time of Adam, had not had an equal nor could ever have one."[Sc. 5].
It was built to replace a previous basilica, destroyed in the year 532, during the Niká rebellion in Constantinople. The church was solemnly consecrated in 537, although its original dome collapsed in 558. The one that replaced it, taller but smaller, suffered partial collapses in the 10th and 14th centuries. Nor is its narthex original, since it was restored after a fire in 564, while the vaults were restored in 740, after an earthquake. It still underwent a new alteration after the fall of Constantinople in 1453 and its conversion into a mosque, since its decoration was covered by stucco.[Ar. 1].
Its plan "Plan (architecture)") was of a new type, unknown until that time, the so-called domed basilica, although antecedents of it can be traced back to the 2nd century, a new plan that would become the characteristic of ecclesiastical constructions under Justinian. The invention of the new floor was possible precisely thanks to the use of brick as a construction element to replace stone, a characteristic that arrived in Byzantine architecture from Persian architecture and Mesopotamian architecture").[Ar. 1].
The dome of the building is superimposed on the church floor, without interrupting it with its support pillars. With a length of 72 x 71.7 m, it is rectangular, practically square. The rectangle is divided into three naves "Nave (architecture)") by rows of columns, with an access narthex and galleries in the side naves.[Ar. 2] the dome occupies the center of the main nave, 31 m in diameter and 54 m high, covered with special, lighter white tiles, manufactured in Rhodes.[Ar. 3].
To give greater amplitude to the dome, it is supported by two lateral half domes, which double the space covered by it, half domes that in turn are supported by spherical niches.[Ar. 3] In the north and south wings, there are two former arches that counteract the thrust force of the dome, rising above the columns of the stands and generating a large tympanum "Tympanum (architecture)") equipped with windows.[Ar. 3] In addition, the four large pillars existing at the base of the dome were reinforced with other pillars that are hidden in the side naves, while a set of vaults of different shapes and sizes contribute to dissipating the thrust of the large dome.[Ar. 3] However, the sensation from inside the temple is of a single dome, graceful and majestic, widely illuminated by the forty windows at its beginning.[Ar. 3].
The Byzantine historian Procopius of Caesarea stated about the dome of Hagia Sophia that "It does not seem to rest on a solid construction, but rather to be suspended from the sky by a gold chain and form like a canopy over the church."[Sc. 6].
Also important was the disappeared church of the Holy Apostles of Constantinople, planned as Constantine's mausoleum. Renovated during the time of Justinian I, it was a model for the Basilica of Saint John in Ephesus (completed ca. 565) and that of Saint Mark in Venice,[6] a work of the 19th century. Like the latter, it offered a model of a Greek cross with five domes, widely imitated throughout the Byzantine world.
The church was built on a hill in the city, designed to house the body of Emperor Constantine, [Ar. 4] Being the oldest in Christianity to be consecrated to the Holy Apostles, and dating from the times of the founding of the city of Constantinople itself on ancient Byzantium.
Justinian and his wife Theodora rebuilt it between 536-550,[6] taking up the well-known Greek cross plan of the Constantinian church, crowned by a large dome, which was later richly decorated by Justin II.
The church very soon became the imperial necropolis, thus containing the remains of most of the emperors, distributed in two exterior mausoleums, one to the north and the other to the south of the apse, called heroa, that of Constantine and that of Justinian. The interior of the church, however, did not house any tombs. Each of the heroon housed either modern or ancient tombs, without being grouped in any type of chronological order. Dethier, a scholar who lived in Constantinople and knew perfectly the topography of the medieval city, spoke of 19 sarcophagi in the heroon of Constantine and 17 for that of Justinian. Byzantios, a modern Greek writer, adds another five for the first and nine for the second.
The sanctuary received numerous relics: those of the holy apostles Andrew, Luke, Timothy "Timothy (saint)"), the first bishop of Ephesus, and Matthew, as well as those of the saints Cosmas and Damian "Cosmas and Damian (martyrs)").
Around the church were sumptuous porticos, the stoai, along which the isolated sarcophagi of some basileis were arranged. Apparently, all the sarcophagi were made of marble, completely covered with dazzling ornaments in silver and precious stones. The effect was one of grandeur, especially in the sunlight. Most of the sarcophagus covers were roof-shaped, and contained even more jewels inside. Various patriarchs were also buried there, notable among them was John Chrysostom.
The tombs were stripped by Alexius IV Angelo to pay the crusaders of the Fourth Crusade, who also looted the church, breaking and destroying the tombs. What remained was razed by the dervishes after the fall of Constantinople in 1453, who apparently spent fourteen hours destroying with clubs and iron bars what had been saved from the destruction caused by the crusaders.
Italy
The Italian peninsula was widely linked to the Byzantine Empire, which established the city of Ravenna as the capital of one of its exarchates, while controlling large parts of the peninsula, incorporated into its empire at the risk of war and political events.
On the other hand, the prestige inherent to Byzantine architecture deeply marked the buildings in other parts of the peninsula or Sicily, radiating its influences from there to the rest of Western Europe.
Constantinople was not the only important focus in this first Golden Age of Byzantium, it is necessary to remember the nucleus of Ravenna (capital of the Byzantine Empire in the West from the century to the century), the western exarchate located in the northeast of the Italian peninsula, on the shores of the Adriatic Sea, next to Venice. Furthermore, Ravenna was a naval base of the Roman Navy, which allowed it control of the Adriatic.[Sc. 7].
The Byzantine churches of Ravenna present two models: one of clear Constantinopolitan inspiration related to the church of Saints Sergius and Bacchus, that of the church of San Vital in Ravenna (538-547), [Sc. 8] in which, like its model, it has an octagonal plan with a surrounding nave between the high pillars and with a semicircular extension in the head, in front of the apse of the presbytery "Presbytery (architecture)"); At the foot it has a wide atrium with side towers.
In this church of San Vital the most characteristic features of the stylistics in Western medieval architecture are already prefigured, especially in those that refer to the vertical direction of the construction to the detriment of the preceding horizontality.
The other Byzantine churches in Ravenna have Early Christian influence due to their basilica structure with a flat roof. They are the basilica of San Apolinar in Classe and the church of San Apolinar Nuevo, both from the first half of the century and with outstanding mosaics. Other monuments must also be added to the churches, such as the mausoleum of Gala Placidia.
The Mausoleum of Gala Placidia (it is known as this, although it is actually the chapel of San Lorenzo) was erected by order of Gala Placidia, the widow of Constantius III and regent of the Roman Empire on behalf of her son Valentinian III, upon her return to Italy after the death of her husband, so it can be deduced that it is very shortly after 421, the date of Constantius's death.[Sc. 9] Some claim that it is the mausoleum of Gala Placidia herself, but documentary sources indicate that she died and was buried in Rome, although her remains currently rest in Ravenna, in the very nearby church of San Vitale.
The chapel (or mausoleum) is built on a Greek cross plan, the first time this type of plan was used in Western architecture, and is adjacent to a basilica that also has a Greek cross plan.
The exterior appearance of the building, 15 m long by 13 m wide, highlights the use of brick, with which the walls were raised, equipped with blind arches and small windows.[Sc. 9] The roof "Roof (construction)") of the building is based on (flat Roman tile), pouring with four waters in the dome and two waters in the rest of the building.
Russia
In the Second Golden Age, Byzantine art spread to the Russian area of Armenia, in kyiv the church of Saint Sophia "Church of Saint Sophia (kyiv)") was built in the year 1017, faithfully following the influence of the architecture of Constantinople, it was structured in a basilica form with five naves "Nave (architecture)") ending in apses, in Novgorod the churches of Saint George and of Santa Sofia, both with a central floor. It must be kept in mind that the current Ukraine and Russia had converted to Christianity through the action of missionaries of Bulgarian origin belonging to the Orthodox Church. To this must be added the marriage that occurred in 989 between Prince Vladimir I of kyiv and Princess Anne, sister of Emperor Basil II.[Sc. 20].
During the Third Golden Age, between the 13th and 15th centuries, Byzantine art continued to spread throughout Europe and Russia, with church floors predominating, covered by bulging domes "Bulb (botany)") on circular or polygonal "Drum (architecture)" drums. The church of the Holy Apostles of Thessaloniki "Church of the Holy Apostles (Thessaloniki)"), from the 16th century, the church of Mystras"), in the Peloponnese, and some monasteries on Mount Athos correspond to this stage in Greece.
Likewise, Byzantine temples are multiplying in the Danube valleys, in Romania and Bulgaria, reaching the Russian lands of Moscow where the Saint Basil's Cathedral stands out, in Moscow's Red Square, built in the time of Ivan the Terrible (1555-1561), whose five domes, the tallest and slenderest in the transept and another four located in the angles that form the arms of the cross, stand out for their color, for the high drums and for its characteristic artistic profiles.
The heritage of Byzantine architecture
The very connection of Byzantine art with the Byzantine Empire and with the ceremonial and imperial pageantry, added to the legitimation granted by the Orthodox faith, facilitated the expansion of Byzantine art in geographical areas linked to Orthodoxy, especially in the territories of present-day Ukraine, Belarus and Russia.[Sc. 21].
After Orthodoxy and Byzantine art had been consolidated in the Russian lands (for example, entire neighborhoods of Constantinople were copied in kyiv), the fall of Constantinople in 1453, with the emigration that the process entailed, caused the Russian Empire to emerge as the natural heir of Byzantium, assuming as an inherent part of said inheritance the basic elements of Byzantine art.[Sc. 21].
On the other hand, Byzantine architecture opened the door in Western Europe to Romanesque architecture and Gothic architecture. In the East it also had a profound influence on Islamic architecture, with notable examples such as the Umayyad mosque in Damascus and the Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem, which highlight in their decorations the work of Byzantine craftsmen and mosaic builders. In Bulgaria, Russia, Romania, Georgia and other countries of Orthodox faith, Byzantine architecture continued in force for much longer, giving rise to various local architectural schools.
In the 19th century, parallel to the revival of Gothic art that gave rise to neo-Gothic architecture, neo-Byzantine architecture also developed, which inspired architectural gems such as Westminster Cathedral in London. In Bristol, between 1850 and 1880, a style known as Bristol Byzantine was generated, becoming popular thanks to the industrial buildings that combined Byzantine elements with others from the Mudejar architectural style. It was developed on a large scale in Russia by Konstantin Thon and his disciples, who designed the Cathedral of St. Vladimir "Cathedral of St. Vladimir (kyiv)") in kyiv, the Cathedral of St. Nicholas&action=edit&redlink=1 "Cathedral of St. Nicholas (St. Petersburg) (not yet drafted)") in St. Petersburg, the Cathedral of Alexander Nevsky in Sofia and the New Athos Monastery near Sukhumi. The largest Neo-Byzantine project of the century was the temple of Saint Sava in Belgrade, still unfinished.
Byzantine architecture in Spain
In Spain, Byzantine architecture had little presence. Its greatest representation is in the province of Zamora, first in its capital, with the dome of the Zamora cathedral from 1174, in the reign of Alfonso VII, and the dome of the collegiate church of Santa María la Mayor "Colegiata de Santa María la Mayor (Toro)") in the city of Toro "Toro (Spain)"); Furthermore, in Castilla y León there is the dome of the old cathedral of Salamanca from 1236, and in Extremadura the old cathedral of Plasencia, models based on the cathedral of Zamora, which was the first of the churches that now make up the group of Leonese domes.
Minor examples can also be found linked to the military presence of the Byzantine Empire in some brief periods of the centuries and in the southeast of the peninsula. Thus, for example, the Byzantine wall of Cartagena "Cartagena (Spain)").[7].
Some of the elements of Byzantine architecture, especially adopted from examples in Syria and other parts of the Middle East, arrived in Spain through Islamic architecture.
Grades
Glossary:.
References
[9] ↑ Trompa: arco diagonal tendido en chaflán en cada uno de los cuatro ángulos de una torre cuadrada. Los cuatro arcos soportan pequeños muros que transforman el cuadrado en un octágono.
[10] ↑ Nave lateral: nave en los lados de la nave central de una iglesia, generalmente de menor altura que la nave principal. A veces se llaman pasillos. Y también colaterales cuando su altura es igual a la de la nave principal.
[22] ↑ Capitel bizantino: capitel en forma de pirámide truncada e invertido en la punta, decorado con follajes o motivos geométricos..
[23] ↑ Tribuna: en las iglesias, una galería alta que corre sobre las naves laterales. Glossaire, p. 426.
[26] ↑ Ábside: extremo de la nave central de la basílica en forma de semicírculo, abovedado en forma de concha.
[33] ↑ Cristo Pantocrátor: literalmente, «Cristo, señor del mundo»; generalmente figurado en la cima interior de las cúpulas de las iglesias bizantinas por una efigie de proporciones gigantescas. Glossaire, p. 340.
[35] ↑ Tambor: un muro cilíndrico (o poligonal) que sostiene, en su base, un domo o una cúpula.
[43] ↑ bóvedas de arista: en la bóveda de arista, la abertura de dos bóvedas de cañón continúa sin que se interrumpan mutuamente y los paños de las bóvedas que quedan después de la penetración se cruzan de acuerdo con las aristas vivas que forman una cruz de San Andrés, la misma que correspondía a las ángulos reentrantes de la bóveda precedente.
[48] ↑ Ménsula: fuerte saliente de piedra, madera o hierro sobre la plomada de un paramento, destinada a soportar varios objetos: vigas, cornisas, arcos, etc.).
[49] ↑ Dentículo: motivo ornamental. Yuxtaposición de pequeños recortes rectangulares tallados en una cornisa y separados por huecos de un ancho igual a la mitad del ancho de un dentículo y designados por el nombre de metátomas.
The Byzantine Empire emerged at the beginning of the century from the chaos in which it had struggled in previous centuries. This period is called the "Macedonian Renaissance." But this empire no longer includes the entire Mediterranean: Asia Minor will be the theater of the Arab invasions; the Slavs settle in the Balkans; Southern Italy and Sicily are the scene of a struggle between the Pope and the Normans. So the second period of Byzantine architecture will focus almost exclusively on Constantinople and its surroundings.[Ma. 13] The reigns of Theophilus "Theophilus (emperor)") (r. 829-842) and Basil I (r. 867-886) were marked by a desire for renewal as demonstrated by the texts of the time in which the terms neos, kainos, kainourgios abound, which mean, here, less a "novelty" than a "rejuvenation" or a "return to the sources", making a consolidation of traditional art.[Ma. 14].
The monuments erected during this period renew or imitate the most glorious monuments of Justinian, in a more modest form, because they were no longer intended for the crowds of the past, but for a more restricted public that revolved around the emperor: dignitaries and courtiers.[Ma. 15].
Likewise, newly built churches are less intended to be the seat of a bishopric or parish than to serve a monastery whose clergy were becoming increasingly autonomous and seeking to evade both episcopal and imperial jurisdiction. The new monasteries, previously erected in the countryside where the monks lived off the fruits of their land, now tended to establish themselves in Constantinople or, at least, to establish a service there (metochia).[5].
This period of architectural effervescence was followed by the rule of Basil II (r. 976-1025), a period of almost complete emptiness, for although he managed to expand the borders of the empire, which at that time included the entire Balkans and extended into Asia from Armenia to the coasts of Syria, the emperor was a thrifty soldier who cared little about architecture and wanted above all to restore the public treasury.
In regions that had already been part of the empire, Byzantine influence remained, but local traditions became preeminent. Thus, in Sicily, formerly part of the empire, but conquered by the Muslims in 902 before being taken by the Normans in 1072, a genre developed that could be described as "orientalizing." Almost all Norman kings will look for their craftsmen in the Byzantine world. And if the churches they built generally adopted the western plan of three naves without a dome, their interior finish will be inspired by those of Byzantium, without preserving their symbolism. The cathedral of Cefalù, begun in 1131 during the reign of Roger I of Sicily, presents in the apse vault a bust of Christ Pantocrator [Gl. 6] which, in a typically Byzantine church, should have occupied the dome. This deviation from the "hierarchy" continues on the vertical walls of the apses where the Virgin appears, no longer as the Theotokos (that is, as mother of the child-God), but in a position of prayer between the archangels above and the apostles below.[Ta. 3].
When the Byzantine Empire entered that dark period, a genre of its own developed between the century and the Arab conquest in Armenia. Very soon the longitudinal plan was abandoned in favor of the cross plan inscribed in a square and the architects developed various shapes of domes that they modified with various variations by adding niches that housed chapels on certain sides of the square (Mastara church) or separating the dome from the four walls to support it on pillars or columns (Bagaran and Etchmiadzin cathedrals) which will allow the construction of drums [Gl. 7] which will become narrower as they approach the top. They are characterized by the use of circular or octagonal floor plans, whether or not inscribed in a square.[Ma. 16][Ta. 4].
Emperor Theophilus (r. 829-842) devoted himself mainly to the rehabilitation of the protective wall along the sea and the construction of palaces in Constantinople. The architecture of these palaces was strongly influenced by what Theophilus's envoys had seen in Syria and were reminiscent of those of the Umayyad and Abbasid dynasties.[Ma. 14] Basil I (r. 867-886), for his part, built or renovated many churches, including twenty-five in the capital and six in the suburbs. The most famous of them, now missing and only known from medieval descriptions, was the Nea Ekklesia or New Church (880). Presumably built on a so-called "inscribed cross" plan, it was crowned with five domes, covered with mosaics on the inside and copper tiles on the outside.[Ma. 14] Inside, it had at least four chapels consecrated to Christ, the Virgin, the archangels Michael "Miguel (archangel)") and Gabriel, Elijah and Saint Nicholas. With the votive church of the Theotokos Panakrantos (votive church of the mother of God, Constantinople) (today under the ruins of the Fenari Isa mosque), it will serve as a model for many other churches throughout the empire, including the Cattolica de Stilo in southern Italy (17th century), the monastery church of Hosios Lukas (Saint Luke, in Greece, 946-955), the Nea Moni (new monastery) on the island of Chios (1045), and the monastery of Dafni near Athens (1050). time in height and slenderness.
The Byzantine monasteries of this period show architectural complexes with common characteristics. They are usually surrounded by a wall and have an elaborate portal, often provided with benches where the poor and beggars came to ask for alms. The portal opened onto a large interior patio in the middle of which stood the church which, contrary to the practice of the primitive era, was separated from the other buildings, which forced more importance to be given to its external appearance. The habitation buildings were lined inside the walls with their rectangular cells, generally vaulted. The second most important building was the refectory and the adjoining kitchen. There were other buildings, usually a fountain, an oven, a house for visitors, sometimes an infirmary and baths.[Ma. 17].
It was also at this time that the construction of the monasteries of Mount Athos began, which, with the Great Lavra of Saint Athanasius in 961, gradually became the center of Orthodox monasticism. With the exception of the Protaton, the oldest church located in the administrative capital of Karyés, all the other churches take the shape of a clover after the model of the katholikon (main church of a monastery) which would have been built by Saint Athanasius himself.[Ma. 18].
Pantokrator
Zeyrek Camii
Theotokos Kyriotissa
Kalenderhane Camii
If it has been possible to speak of "renaissance" to characterize the intellectual explosion that occurred under the dynasty of the Palaeologues, this hardly manifested itself in the architectural field. The few palaces and monasteries dating from this period perpetuate the traditions of the intermediate period without adding new elements. Of note is the church located south of the Lips monastery (Fenari Isa Camii) erected around 1280 by Empress Theodora, wife of Michael VIII (r. 1261-1282), as well as the churches of the Holy Savior of Chora (Kariye Camii) and Marie Pammakaristos dating around 1310. But these are often additions to existing buildings or renovations such as those of the Chora monastery carried out by Teodoro Metoquita between 1316 and 1321.[Ma. 21].
Outside Constantinople, the Church of the Holy Apostles of Thessaloniki "Church of the Holy Apostles (Thessaloniki)") is often considered typical of this later period with its outer walls ornamented with motifs made of interlocking bricks or ceramics. Unlike previous periods, the exterior has priority over the interior and is provided with niches, arcades, corbels[Gl. 9] and denticles[Gl. 10] where tiles and stone intersect. This relief masonry probably culminates in the church of Achtamar on the island of the same name in Lake Van, a symbol of Armenian architecture.[Ta. 6] Other churches from this period preceding the fall of Constantinople are preserved in Mistra (Brontochion monastery) and on Mount Athos.[Ma. 22].
Unlike their Byzantine colleagues, Slavic architects gave impetus to vertical buildings. As a result, the impression of the dome as a celestial vault that gradually descends towards the world of men in a majestic curve is lost. The dome becomes a kind of inverted well in which the image of the Pantokrator is zoomed out and appears tiny. The horizontal space is privileged and, thanks to the renewal of painting during this period, it is covered with scenes that become tables without relation to the architectural space.[Ma. 23.
tégula
Regarding the interior decoration of the mausoleum, the majestic dome stands out, equipped with sumptuous decoration, in a sober and severe ensemble. The ornamentation of the dome is based on mosaics, showing a starry blue sky presided over by a golden cross, in colors matching those of the stars, [Sc. 10] so that the dark blue color of the sky obscures the dome, making the cross and the stars stand out on the contrary.[Sc. 11] Simultaneously, to convert the square space of the dome into the round space of heaven, the four evangelists appear in the corners of the dome.[Sc. 11].
On the other hand, the naves "Nave (architecture)") of the mausoleum that intersect in the dome have a barrel vault.
As another example of the link between political and religious power, and its influence on Byzantine art, the representative governors of the Byzantine Empire in Ravenna were the city's own archbishops. It was the bishops Maximian and Victor who, in the middle of the century, consecrated the church of San Vitale, built with the financial help of the Greek banker Julian Argentarios, like other monuments in the city. The church's peculiarity is that it is the only octagonal church preserved in the West.[Sc. 12].
The rich exterior decoration of the church, however, contrasts with the decorative sobriety that can be seen inside, in which circular arches make it possible to move from the octagonal base to a circular dome. The mosaics of the apse and the presbytery have been preserved, the rest of the interior being decorated with marble at the time, the gilding of the capitals having disappeared, which has decreased the luminosity of the complex.[Sc. 13].
The dominant figure in the apse is Christ, accompanied by Saint Vitale, with images of the Evangelists and episodes from the Old Testament existing in the presbytery.[Sc. 13] The presbytery is at the back, with a section covered by a groin vault and an oven vault closure.
The galleries "Gallery (room)") of the presbytery "Presbytery (architecture)") were also decorated, but the work on the capitals, with fine openwork, stands out especially. There is also an ivory pulpit, belonging to Bishop Maximian, although it is unknown whether it is a local work or was imported from Constantinople.[Sc. 14].
The Basilica of Saint Apollinaris in Classe is one of the main monuments of Byzantine architecture in Ravenna, to the point that when the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization declared eight churches of Ravenna a World Heritage Site, it cited the Basilica of Saint Apollinaris in Classe as "an exceptional example of the oldest Christian basilicas with the purity and simplicity of its design and the use of space, as well as with the sumptuous nature of its decoration.
The imposing brick structure was erected by order of Bishop Ursicinus, using the financial resources of a Greek banker, Julian Argentarius (the same one who financed the church of San Vital), [Sc. 15] and is located next to a Christian cemetery, and quite possibly on the top of a pre-existing pagan temple, as attested to by some tombstones reused in its construction. It is located next to the old port of Ravenna.[Sc. 15].
Saint Apollinaris in Classe was consecrated on May 8, 549 by Bishop Maximian, being dedicated to the consecration of the first bishop of Ravenna, Saint Apollinaris. The Basilica is thus contemporary with the church of San Vitale in Ravenna. In 856, the relics of Saint Apollinaris were transferred from the basilica of San Apolinar in Classe to the basilica of San Apolinar Nuovo, in Ravenna itself.
The exterior has a large façade, with a clerestory window. The narthex to the right of the entrance is a later addition, as is the century bell tower.
The interior contains 24 columns of Greek marble, but the exceptional importance lies in the apse, which culminates in a green mosaic with meadows and sheep, the latter an allegory of the faithful who are welcomed by Saint Apollinaris with open arms, under the supervision of the twelve apostles, also presented as lambs leaving Jerusalem and Bethlehem. A large cross presides over the complex, a cross that is surrounded by Moses and Elijah.[Sc. 15] The side walls are currently bare, but surely one day they were also covered with mosaics, which were probably destroyed by the Venetians in 1449, although they left standing the mosaic decoration in the apse and on the triumphal arch "Arco (architecture)"). The latter represents the Savior, among lambs (the faithful, in this case), alongside the Apostles.[Sc. 16].
Both the columns and the bricks used for construction are apparently imported from Byzantium.[Sc. 15].
The basilica of San Apollinaris Nuovo (or basilica of San Apolinar Nuovo) was built on the same type of plan as that of San Apolinar in Classe, bearing this name due to the transfer of the relics of Saint Apollinaris, who was the first bishop of the diocese, from the basilica of San Apollinaris in Classe.[Sc. 16]
It was built during the time of Theodoric the Great, and was decorated with mosaics, which were later suppressed, as were any references to Arianism or to Theodoric himself.[Sc. 16] The suppression of the mosaics was the work of Bishop Agnello, and of these mosaics only the highest parts of the decoration were saved; Furthermore, for a time the church was consecrated to Saint Martin of Tours, due to his bitter fight against heresy.
The basilica was built with three naves, one main and two lateral, not having a quadriportico") but only the narthex. It has an external appearance based on brick, with a "Cover (construction)" roof with a gabled slope. In the upper part of the façade there is, right in the center, a marble biphora, above which there are two other small openings. The central nave ends in a semicircular apse.
However, an important set of mosaics remains, which are located in the main nave, consisting of processions that head, from the entrance of the building, towards representations of Christ, on the north wall, or of the Virgin Mary seated on her throne, on the south wall, with representations of the prophets and patriarchs on the upper level, occupying the spaces between the windows.[Sc. 16] The mosaics began in 504, although they were modified later.
In Italy, the aforementioned Basilica of San Marcos in Venice stands out, from the year 1063, with a Greek cross plan inscribed in a rectangle and covered with five main domes [Sc. 17] on the drum "Drum (architecture)"), one on the transept "Cruise (architecture)") and four on the arms of the cross, resembling in its structure the disappeared church of the Holy Apostles of Constantinople.
The works for its construction began in 1063, on a previous church, from the 1st century, which housed the body of Saint Mark, patron saint of Venice, a temple destroyed in riots in 916. The works finished in 1093, beginning the work of decorating its interior, for which various ancient temples in the vicinity were stripped.[Ar. 4] Not only Byzantine artists participated in the works, but materials were also imported from Byzantium, especially capitals.[Sc. 18].
The basilica, considered "one of the most beautiful architectural examples of Byzantine art", [Ar. 5] is equipped with three apses at the head, the central one larger than the lateral ones. The dome is the dominant architectural element of the "Cover (construction)" roof, actually consisting of a set of fourteen differentiated domes, with variable sizes between them depending on their location, [Ar. 5] with the smaller ones contributing to the diffusion of the loads of the main one.
The domed roof is supported by a set of solid pillars, to which is joined a dense network of columns that support the upper gallery "Gallery (room)") of the basilica.[Ar. 5] On the main façade there are five doors, with decorations similar to those of Romanesque architecture, with columns on which semicircular arches rest or, in the case of the side doors, a pointed arch.[Ar. 5] The tympanum "Tympanum (architecture)") existing above the doors present decorations from various periods and styles, some of them revealing their Byzantine origin due to the gold leaf with which they are covered.<[Ar. 4].
This first body or floor supports a balustrade, behind which there is a second body, with five blind arches with the same decorative scheme as the lower floor, with a central arch larger than the lateral ones in which there is a glass window for lighting the interior of the basilica, as happens in Romanesque and Gothic architecture.[Ar. 4].
The first interior decoration of the Basilica of Saint Mark was the work of specialists in Byzantine mosaics, but these mosaics were lost during the fire that the monument suffered in 1106.[Sc. 17] Except for some fragments that were recovered after the fire, the current mosaics are therefore from the 19th century. [Sc. 19].
The Byzantine Empire emerged at the beginning of the century from the chaos in which it had struggled in previous centuries. This period is called the "Macedonian Renaissance." But this empire no longer includes the entire Mediterranean: Asia Minor will be the theater of the Arab invasions; the Slavs settle in the Balkans; Southern Italy and Sicily are the scene of a struggle between the Pope and the Normans. So the second period of Byzantine architecture will focus almost exclusively on Constantinople and its surroundings.[Ma. 13] The reigns of Theophilus "Theophilus (emperor)") (r. 829-842) and Basil I (r. 867-886) were marked by a desire for renewal as demonstrated by the texts of the time in which the terms neos, kainos, kainourgios abound, which mean, here, less a "novelty" than a "rejuvenation" or a "return to the sources", making a consolidation of traditional art.[Ma. 14].
The monuments erected during this period renew or imitate the most glorious monuments of Justinian, in a more modest form, because they were no longer intended for the crowds of the past, but for a more restricted public that revolved around the emperor: dignitaries and courtiers.[Ma. 15].
Likewise, newly built churches are less intended to be the seat of a bishopric or parish than to serve a monastery whose clergy were becoming increasingly autonomous and seeking to evade both episcopal and imperial jurisdiction. The new monasteries, previously erected in the countryside where the monks lived off the fruits of their land, now tended to establish themselves in Constantinople or, at least, to establish a service there (metochia).[5].
This period of architectural effervescence was followed by the rule of Basil II (r. 976-1025), a period of almost complete emptiness, for although he managed to expand the borders of the empire, which at that time included the entire Balkans and extended into Asia from Armenia to the coasts of Syria, the emperor was a thrifty soldier who cared little about architecture and wanted above all to restore the public treasury.
In regions that had already been part of the empire, Byzantine influence remained, but local traditions became preeminent. Thus, in Sicily, formerly part of the empire, but conquered by the Muslims in 902 before being taken by the Normans in 1072, a genre developed that could be described as "orientalizing." Almost all Norman kings will look for their craftsmen in the Byzantine world. And if the churches they built generally adopted the western plan of three naves without a dome, their interior finish will be inspired by those of Byzantium, without preserving their symbolism. The cathedral of Cefalù, begun in 1131 during the reign of Roger I of Sicily, presents in the apse vault a bust of Christ Pantocrator [Gl. 6] which, in a typically Byzantine church, should have occupied the dome. This deviation from the "hierarchy" continues on the vertical walls of the apses where the Virgin appears, no longer as the Theotokos (that is, as mother of the child-God), but in a position of prayer between the archangels above and the apostles below.[Ta. 3].
When the Byzantine Empire entered that dark period, a genre of its own developed between the century and the Arab conquest in Armenia. Very soon the longitudinal plan was abandoned in favor of the cross plan inscribed in a square and the architects developed various shapes of domes that they modified with various variations by adding niches that housed chapels on certain sides of the square (Mastara church) or separating the dome from the four walls to support it on pillars or columns (Bagaran and Etchmiadzin cathedrals) which will allow the construction of drums [Gl. 7] which will become narrower as they approach the top. They are characterized by the use of circular or octagonal floor plans, whether or not inscribed in a square.[Ma. 16][Ta. 4].
Emperor Theophilus (r. 829-842) devoted himself mainly to the rehabilitation of the protective wall along the sea and the construction of palaces in Constantinople. The architecture of these palaces was strongly influenced by what Theophilus's envoys had seen in Syria and were reminiscent of those of the Umayyad and Abbasid dynasties.[Ma. 14] Basil I (r. 867-886), for his part, built or renovated many churches, including twenty-five in the capital and six in the suburbs. The most famous of them, now missing and only known from medieval descriptions, was the Nea Ekklesia or New Church (880). Presumably built on a so-called "inscribed cross" plan, it was crowned with five domes, covered with mosaics on the inside and copper tiles on the outside.[Ma. 14] Inside, it had at least four chapels consecrated to Christ, the Virgin, the archangels Michael "Miguel (archangel)") and Gabriel, Elijah and Saint Nicholas. With the votive church of the Theotokos Panakrantos (votive church of the mother of God, Constantinople) (today under the ruins of the Fenari Isa mosque), it will serve as a model for many other churches throughout the empire, including the Cattolica de Stilo in southern Italy (17th century), the monastery church of Hosios Lukas (Saint Luke, in Greece, 946-955), the Nea Moni (new monastery) on the island of Chios (1045), and the monastery of Dafni near Athens (1050). time in height and slenderness.
The Byzantine monasteries of this period show architectural complexes with common characteristics. They are usually surrounded by a wall and have an elaborate portal, often provided with benches where the poor and beggars came to ask for alms. The portal opened onto a large interior patio in the middle of which stood the church which, contrary to the practice of the primitive era, was separated from the other buildings, which forced more importance to be given to its external appearance. The habitation buildings were lined inside the walls with their rectangular cells, generally vaulted. The second most important building was the refectory and the adjoining kitchen. There were other buildings, usually a fountain, an oven, a house for visitors, sometimes an infirmary and baths.[Ma. 17].
It was also at this time that the construction of the monasteries of Mount Athos began, which, with the Great Lavra of Saint Athanasius in 961, gradually became the center of Orthodox monasticism. With the exception of the Protaton, the oldest church located in the administrative capital of Karyés, all the other churches take the shape of a clover after the model of the katholikon (main church of a monastery) which would have been built by Saint Athanasius himself.[Ma. 18].
Pantokrator
Zeyrek Camii
Theotokos Kyriotissa
Kalenderhane Camii
If it has been possible to speak of "renaissance" to characterize the intellectual explosion that occurred under the dynasty of the Palaeologues, this hardly manifested itself in the architectural field. The few palaces and monasteries dating from this period perpetuate the traditions of the intermediate period without adding new elements. Of note is the church located south of the Lips monastery (Fenari Isa Camii) erected around 1280 by Empress Theodora, wife of Michael VIII (r. 1261-1282), as well as the churches of the Holy Savior of Chora (Kariye Camii) and Marie Pammakaristos dating around 1310. But these are often additions to existing buildings or renovations such as those of the Chora monastery carried out by Teodoro Metoquita between 1316 and 1321.[Ma. 21].
Outside Constantinople, the Church of the Holy Apostles of Thessaloniki "Church of the Holy Apostles (Thessaloniki)") is often considered typical of this later period with its outer walls ornamented with motifs made of interlocking bricks or ceramics. Unlike previous periods, the exterior has priority over the interior and is provided with niches, arcades, corbels[Gl. 9] and denticles[Gl. 10] where tiles and stone intersect. This relief masonry probably culminates in the church of Achtamar on the island of the same name in Lake Van, a symbol of Armenian architecture.[Ta. 6] Other churches from this period preceding the fall of Constantinople are preserved in Mistra (Brontochion monastery) and on Mount Athos.[Ma. 22].
Unlike their Byzantine colleagues, Slavic architects gave impetus to vertical buildings. As a result, the impression of the dome as a celestial vault that gradually descends towards the world of men in a majestic curve is lost. The dome becomes a kind of inverted well in which the image of the Pantokrator is zoomed out and appears tiny. The horizontal space is privileged and, thanks to the renewal of painting during this period, it is covered with scenes that become tables without relation to the architectural space.[Ma. 23.
tégula
Regarding the interior decoration of the mausoleum, the majestic dome stands out, equipped with sumptuous decoration, in a sober and severe ensemble. The ornamentation of the dome is based on mosaics, showing a starry blue sky presided over by a golden cross, in colors matching those of the stars, [Sc. 10] so that the dark blue color of the sky obscures the dome, making the cross and the stars stand out on the contrary.[Sc. 11] Simultaneously, to convert the square space of the dome into the round space of heaven, the four evangelists appear in the corners of the dome.[Sc. 11].
On the other hand, the naves "Nave (architecture)") of the mausoleum that intersect in the dome have a barrel vault.
As another example of the link between political and religious power, and its influence on Byzantine art, the representative governors of the Byzantine Empire in Ravenna were the city's own archbishops. It was the bishops Maximian and Victor who, in the middle of the century, consecrated the church of San Vitale, built with the financial help of the Greek banker Julian Argentarios, like other monuments in the city. The church's peculiarity is that it is the only octagonal church preserved in the West.[Sc. 12].
The rich exterior decoration of the church, however, contrasts with the decorative sobriety that can be seen inside, in which circular arches make it possible to move from the octagonal base to a circular dome. The mosaics of the apse and the presbytery have been preserved, the rest of the interior being decorated with marble at the time, the gilding of the capitals having disappeared, which has decreased the luminosity of the complex.[Sc. 13].
The dominant figure in the apse is Christ, accompanied by Saint Vitale, with images of the Evangelists and episodes from the Old Testament existing in the presbytery.[Sc. 13] The presbytery is at the back, with a section covered by a groin vault and an oven vault closure.
The galleries "Gallery (room)") of the presbytery "Presbytery (architecture)") were also decorated, but the work on the capitals, with fine openwork, stands out especially. There is also an ivory pulpit, belonging to Bishop Maximian, although it is unknown whether it is a local work or was imported from Constantinople.[Sc. 14].
The Basilica of Saint Apollinaris in Classe is one of the main monuments of Byzantine architecture in Ravenna, to the point that when the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization declared eight churches of Ravenna a World Heritage Site, it cited the Basilica of Saint Apollinaris in Classe as "an exceptional example of the oldest Christian basilicas with the purity and simplicity of its design and the use of space, as well as with the sumptuous nature of its decoration.
The imposing brick structure was erected by order of Bishop Ursicinus, using the financial resources of a Greek banker, Julian Argentarius (the same one who financed the church of San Vital), [Sc. 15] and is located next to a Christian cemetery, and quite possibly on the top of a pre-existing pagan temple, as attested to by some tombstones reused in its construction. It is located next to the old port of Ravenna.[Sc. 15].
Saint Apollinaris in Classe was consecrated on May 8, 549 by Bishop Maximian, being dedicated to the consecration of the first bishop of Ravenna, Saint Apollinaris. The Basilica is thus contemporary with the church of San Vitale in Ravenna. In 856, the relics of Saint Apollinaris were transferred from the basilica of San Apolinar in Classe to the basilica of San Apolinar Nuovo, in Ravenna itself.
The exterior has a large façade, with a clerestory window. The narthex to the right of the entrance is a later addition, as is the century bell tower.
The interior contains 24 columns of Greek marble, but the exceptional importance lies in the apse, which culminates in a green mosaic with meadows and sheep, the latter an allegory of the faithful who are welcomed by Saint Apollinaris with open arms, under the supervision of the twelve apostles, also presented as lambs leaving Jerusalem and Bethlehem. A large cross presides over the complex, a cross that is surrounded by Moses and Elijah.[Sc. 15] The side walls are currently bare, but surely one day they were also covered with mosaics, which were probably destroyed by the Venetians in 1449, although they left standing the mosaic decoration in the apse and on the triumphal arch "Arco (architecture)"). The latter represents the Savior, among lambs (the faithful, in this case), alongside the Apostles.[Sc. 16].
Both the columns and the bricks used for construction are apparently imported from Byzantium.[Sc. 15].
The basilica of San Apollinaris Nuovo (or basilica of San Apolinar Nuovo) was built on the same type of plan as that of San Apolinar in Classe, bearing this name due to the transfer of the relics of Saint Apollinaris, who was the first bishop of the diocese, from the basilica of San Apollinaris in Classe.[Sc. 16]
It was built during the time of Theodoric the Great, and was decorated with mosaics, which were later suppressed, as were any references to Arianism or to Theodoric himself.[Sc. 16] The suppression of the mosaics was the work of Bishop Agnello, and of these mosaics only the highest parts of the decoration were saved; Furthermore, for a time the church was consecrated to Saint Martin of Tours, due to his bitter fight against heresy.
The basilica was built with three naves, one main and two lateral, not having a quadriportico") but only the narthex. It has an external appearance based on brick, with a "Cover (construction)" roof with a gabled slope. In the upper part of the façade there is, right in the center, a marble biphora, above which there are two other small openings. The central nave ends in a semicircular apse.
However, an important set of mosaics remains, which are located in the main nave, consisting of processions that head, from the entrance of the building, towards representations of Christ, on the north wall, or of the Virgin Mary seated on her throne, on the south wall, with representations of the prophets and patriarchs on the upper level, occupying the spaces between the windows.[Sc. 16] The mosaics began in 504, although they were modified later.
In Italy, the aforementioned Basilica of San Marcos in Venice stands out, from the year 1063, with a Greek cross plan inscribed in a rectangle and covered with five main domes [Sc. 17] on the drum "Drum (architecture)"), one on the transept "Cruise (architecture)") and four on the arms of the cross, resembling in its structure the disappeared church of the Holy Apostles of Constantinople.
The works for its construction began in 1063, on a previous church, from the 1st century, which housed the body of Saint Mark, patron saint of Venice, a temple destroyed in riots in 916. The works finished in 1093, beginning the work of decorating its interior, for which various ancient temples in the vicinity were stripped.[Ar. 4] Not only Byzantine artists participated in the works, but materials were also imported from Byzantium, especially capitals.[Sc. 18].
The basilica, considered "one of the most beautiful architectural examples of Byzantine art", [Ar. 5] is equipped with three apses at the head, the central one larger than the lateral ones. The dome is the dominant architectural element of the "Cover (construction)" roof, actually consisting of a set of fourteen differentiated domes, with variable sizes between them depending on their location, [Ar. 5] with the smaller ones contributing to the diffusion of the loads of the main one.
The domed roof is supported by a set of solid pillars, to which is joined a dense network of columns that support the upper gallery "Gallery (room)") of the basilica.[Ar. 5] On the main façade there are five doors, with decorations similar to those of Romanesque architecture, with columns on which semicircular arches rest or, in the case of the side doors, a pointed arch.[Ar. 5] The tympanum "Tympanum (architecture)") existing above the doors present decorations from various periods and styles, some of them revealing their Byzantine origin due to the gold leaf with which they are covered.<[Ar. 4].
This first body or floor supports a balustrade, behind which there is a second body, with five blind arches with the same decorative scheme as the lower floor, with a central arch larger than the lateral ones in which there is a glass window for lighting the interior of the basilica, as happens in Romanesque and Gothic architecture.[Ar. 4].
The first interior decoration of the Basilica of Saint Mark was the work of specialists in Byzantine mosaics, but these mosaics were lost during the fire that the monument suffered in 1106.[Sc. 17] Except for some fragments that were recovered after the fire, the current mosaics are therefore from the 19th century. [Sc. 19].