Transcript Byzantine Art and Architecture

The Byzantine Empire
The capital of the
Eastern Roman
empire was
changed to
Byzantium to
provide political,
economic and
military advantages.
It was then
renamed
Constantinople by
Constantine.
What military advantages do you see with this location?
Constantinople
Location of Constantinople
•Protection of the eastern frontier
•Distance from Germanic invasions in
the Western Empire
•Crossroads of trade
•Easily fortified site on a peninsula
bordered by natural harbors
Its location was a crossroads for trade
connecting Europe with Asia and the Black
Sea with the Mediterranean Sea.
Role of Constantinople
•Seat of the Byzantine
Empire until Ottoman
(Muslim) conquest
•Preserved classical
Greco-Roman culture
•Center of trade
Istanbul Market
Greco-Roman Traditions
Byzantine families continued to educate
their children in Roman and Greek
grammar and literature through
monasteries and private tutors,
preserving Greco-Roman culture.
Meanwhile, in the west, Rome had been
conquered by Germanic tribes that had
no written language. As civilization
declined in the west, it continued to
flourish as the New Rome in
Constantinople.
Justinian came to power in 527 AD as an absolute ruler
•As the first to codify Roman law,
Justinian provided the basis for
the law codes of Western
Europe. Became known as
Justinian’s Code.
•Under Justinian, the Byzantine
Empire reached its height in
culture and prosperity.
•Reconquest of former Roman
territories in an effort to restore
New Rome to earlier glory
•Expansion of trade
Greek Orthodox Christianity and imperial
patronage enabled the Byzantine Empire to
develop a unique style of art and architecture.
Greek and Roman traditions were preserved
in the Byzantine Empire.
What is imperial patronage? It means that the
emperor supported and paid for beautiful pieces of
art and the construction of buildings.
The Byzantines used domes and columns in their
architecture. Christianity was the theme of
Byzantine art and mosaics were used to show
religious ceremonies.
Mosaic of Constantine
looking over his city
Byzantine Art and Architecture
•Inspiration provided
by Christian religion
and imperial power
•Icons (religious
images)
•Mosaics in public and
religions structures
•Hagia Sophia (a
Byzantine domed
church)
Can you think of 5
adjectives to
describe this
artwork?
Icon
Hagia Sophia
What elements of Roman Architecture do you see?
Byzantine Culture
•Continued
flourishing of
Greco-Roman
traditions
•Greek language
(as contrasted with
Latin in the West)
•Greek Orthodox
Christianity
•Greek and Roman
knowledge
preserved in
Byzantine libraries
Basilica Cistern
Valens Aqueduct
The cultural and political differences between
the eastern (Byzantine) and western Roman
Empires weakened the unity of the Christian
Church and led to its division in 1054.
Western Church
Eastern Church
•Centered in Rome
•Farther from the seat of
power after Constantinople
Became the capital
•Use of Latin Language in liturgy
•Authority of the Pope accepted
•Practices such as celibacy
accepted
•Centered in Constantinople
•Close to the seat of power after
Constantinople became capital
•Use of Greek language in the liturgy
•Authority of the Patriarch accepted
•Icons prohibited – Iconoclasts destroyed
images
Byzantine
civilization
influenced
Russian
and Eastern
European
civilizations
through
its religion,
culture
and trade.
Why?
Kievan Rus around 1050 CE
http://www.drshirley.org/geog/map30c_rus.gif
Traders from Kiev (present day Ukraine)
traveled down the Dnieper River to trade
in the city of Constantinople. These
traders were Vikings and Slavs (people of
the region north of the Black Sea). The
name “Slav” comes from Slave as many
were sold in Constantinople as slaves.
Kiev would be one of Russia’s earliest
civilizations
Dnieper
River
Constantinople
which is
Istanbul today
Influence of Byzantine Culture on Eastern Europe and
Russia
•Trade routes between the
Black Sea and Baltic Sea
•Adoption of Orthodox
Christianity by Russia and
much of Eastern Europe
•Adoption of Greek
alphabet for the Slavic
languages by St. Cyril
(Cyrillic Alphabet)
•Church architecture and
religious art
Baltic and Black Sea Trade Routes
http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/fac/arts/history/undergraduate/modules/hi127/programme/western/late_medieval_trade_routes.jpg
Cyril and his
brother Methodius
developed a new
alphabet while
trying to teach the
Bible to the Slavs.
The Slavs had no
written language so
Cyril and Methodius
worked to give
them an alphabet.
The Cyrillic
alphabet is still
used today.
The Cyrillic Alphabet
http://www.pbs.org/weta/faceofrussia/reference/img/cyrillicalphabet.gif
http://www.davidgoodwin.net/albums/album30/DSCF1565.sized.jpg
The use of Domes
in church architecture
was adopted from
the Byzantines and
were modified –
Russian domes are
onion-shaped.
Constantinople
Location
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Greco-Roman traditions
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Role
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Justinian
•As the first to codify Roman law, Justinian
provided the basis for the law codes of Western
Europe. Became known as Justinian’s Code.
•Under Justinian, the Byzantine Empire reached
its height in culture and prosperity.
•Re-conquest of former Roman territories in an
effort to restore New Rome to earlier glory.
•Expansion of trade.
What was Imperial Patronage: _____________________________________________
Byzantine Art and Architecture
_________________________________
_________________________________
_________________________________
_________________________________
The Great Schism (Split of the Christian Church)
West
East
Influence of Byzantine
Culture on Eastern
Europe and Russia
•Trade routes between the
Black Sea and Baltic Sea
•Adoption of Orthodox
Christianity by Russia and
much of Eastern Europe
•Adoption of Greek alphabet
for the Slavic languages by St.
Cyril (Cyrillic Alphabet)
•Church architecture and
religious art