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The Byzantine Empire and the Aesthetics of the Sublime

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The Byzantine Empire and the Aesthetics of the Sublime 2

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1 INTRODUCTION ......................................................................................................... 3

2 ROMANITAS ET CHRISTIANITAS ....................................................................... 4

2.1 Christianity in the Byzantine Empire ................................................................... 4

2.2 Periods of Byzantine history .................................................................................. 4

3 BYZANTINE ART ........................................................................................................ 5

3.1 Architecture ............................................................................................................ 5

3.2 Painting .................................................................................................................... 7

3.3 Icons ......................................................................................................................... 8

3.4 Mosaics .................................................................................................................... 9

3.5 Sculpture ................................................................................................................. 9

4 CONCLUSION ............................................................................................................ 10

Literature ............................................................................................................................ 11


1 INTRODUCTION

Nature from the first breathed into our hearts an unconquerable passion for whatever is great and more divine than ourselves. (Myskja, 2002: 51)

This work has a look on the Byzantine art on aspect of its sublimity. Byzantine art refers to

the art of the Byzantine Empire. The Byzantine Empire was founded in 395 when the Roman

Empire was permanently divided. It centered around its capital Constantinople and lasted for

more than 1000 years, leaving behind a rich heritage of impressive monuments, bright

mosaics and expressive frescoes that reflect the radiance of a great culture.

The word sublimity derives from the Latin sublimis which means looking up from. In

contrary to the term beautiful it includes holiness, unattainability and immeasurability.

Longinus, a Greek teacher of rhetoric who may have lived in the first or third century,

described that our soul is uplifted by the true sublime and that sublimity is the echo of a

great soul.

When the Church became the biggest power in the Byzantine Empire the need for an arts

concept arose. Byzantine art is closely related to Early Christian art before the separation of

the Orthodox Church, therefore we cannot clearly differentiate. A Byzantine artist was in fact

a theologian as much as he was an artist. His art presupposed an attitude of prayer and

meditation. On the following pages aesthetic aspects of Byzantine architecture, paintings and

mosaics are described in order to uncover how sublimity was transported within the religious

artworks.

The Byzantine Empire in the 4th

century


2 ROMANITAS ET CHRISTIANITAS

2.1 CHRISTIANITY IN THE BYZANTINE EMPIRE

Byzantine art strongly developed with the establishment of Christianity. The foundation of

Constantinople by Constantine was actually a new foundation of the Eastern Roman Empire

as a Christian state. The imperial Byzantine Church became to be known as the Eastern

Orthodox Church. Christians believed in the Holy Trinity of Father, Son and Holy Spirit

sharing the one divine nature. Through Jesus Christ and in the Holy Spirit men come to know

God and are called to worship Him. The so-called icons images of Christ, the Virgin or a

saint were made to function as objects of adoration in order to bring the believer closer to

the mystical being of God.

State and Church Romanitas et Christianitas were closely connected, together they

formed the pillars of the religious-political vision of the Byzantine Empire. The emperor was

regarded as the Gods representative on earth; he himself had a strong religious belief.

The holy service in which these hands have been employed has originated in pure and genuine faith towards God. (Odahl 2004: 1)

2.2 PERIODS OF BYZANTINE HISTORY

The history of the Byzantine Empire is classified in periods. Some emperors had especially

remarkable influence on the development of Byzantine art.

The first period is the Early Byzantic period, in which art was mainly shaped by emperor

Constantine who for example initiated the construction of the Hagia Sophia. Strong role

played in this period the Edict of Milan that proclaimed religious toleration in the Roman

Empire and led to the development of a monumental Christian art. The following period is the

Justinian period (527565), named by Justinian I who imposed his religious views on all his

subjects by law and under whose reign a number of churches was built. He had great

influence on the development of art and under his rule Constantinople became the center of

art. That is why this period is also called Golden Age. The name of the Macedonian Dynasty

from 843 to 1025 is given by the emperor Basil I who was called the Macedonian. It was the

period of the Triumph of Orthodoxy. The Komnenoi from the Comnenian Dynasty (1081

1185) strongly supported the Byzantine artists to move into direction of greater humanism

and emotion and had therefore as well a great influence on the development of arts. The

Palaeologan Age (12041261) was a last Golden Age of Byzantine art with increasing

cultural exchange between Byzantine and Italian artists.


3 BYZANTINE ART

3.1 ARCHITECTURE

The building of Christian churches started in 311 with emperor Constantine whose mother

initiated the construction of a basilica out of a royal hall. In these churches Christians praised

God and learned what Christ taught. In the west the basilicas were further on the main

Christian churches, where in the Orthodox regions the central-plan churches with dome

became dominant. The main difference between the both styles was the shape of the plan.

Where the basilica plan had the shape of a Latin Cross, the central-plan church was based on a

Greek Cross.

A basilica consisted of a large central hall called ship with narrower, lower side-aisles or

wings on the longer sides, divided from the main hall by rows of decorated columns. The

nave pointed east facing Jerusalem, so that the rising sun shined on the altar. The part where

the altar stood came to be known as choir. Stokstad describes the Basilica of St. John

Lateran with the following words:

The ciborium and altar provided the focal point of the church. The basilica, entered now from the narrow gable end, was a vast rectangular space divided by four

rows of columns into a wide nave flanked by double side aisles. The colonnade and

entablature accentuated the longitudinal focus of the nave, directing the viewers eye to the sanctuary, a ceremonial path illuminated by clerestory windows at the end of the

nave. The triumphal arch signified the triumph of Christ about to take place symbolically

at the altar. The arch marked a dividing line between the worldly nave and aisles and the

sanctified space in the apse. although inspired by the pomp of the imperial court, the magnificence of the church was justified as an attempt to re-create on earth the splendor

of the House of the Lord in Paradise. (Stokstad, 2004: 42)

The decoration of the church was too marvelous for words. The interior was covered all

over with gold, jewels, silk and mosaics. The candles, tapers and lamps were uncountable.

Basilica of St. John Lateran

Isometric reconstruction

Basilica of St. John Lateran

Ceiling


The influence of domed Roman buildings like the

Pantheon led the Byzantine architects to the incorporation

of the dome into Christian architecture. Especially in the

first so-called Golden Age of Byzantine architecture the

central-plan churches with disembodied, high reaching

interior space were constructed. The way of constructing

a pendentive dome made it possible to build higher with

less weight, giving the impression of the firmament. The

dome replaced the ship of the basilica and was

surrounded by an arcade. One of the most beautiful

central-plan churches was the Church of Sta. Costanza in

Rome.

Numerous theories have been advanced as to why circular constructions should have appeared so early on,

in such different places, independently of each other.

Many of these theories enter somewhat deep waters: the

need for a sense of security, fulfilled by the cave-like, egg-

like or womb-like circle. (Pothorn, 1979: 23)

Regarding the advantages of both basilica and central-plan church the architects later

combined the two styles. The result was the characteristic Byzantine Greek-cross-plan church

with a square central mass and four arms of equal length. The finest example of such a

combination and one of the most famous buildings of all times is the Hagia Sophia (meaning

holy wisdom).

Rising above this into the immeasurable air is a helmet

rounded on all sides like a sphere

and, radiant as the heavens, it

bestrides the roof of the church. (Mango, 1972: 83)

Besides a central dome that was more

immense than anything seen before,

multiple smaller domes were added.

Inside the rows of windows, the open

room and sail like niches gave the

impression of lightness. The interior

was covered with golden shimmering

mosaics, ornamental details and fine

decorated capitals.

Hagia Sophia

Arch

Sta. Constanza


3.2 PAINTING

The fast development of architecture had revolutionary influence on Early Christian painting.

Virtuous artists were needed to paint the huge walls of the new built churches and to decorate

them with immense mosaics.

Painting can do for the illiterate what writing does for those who can read. (Gombrich, 1972: 95)

The question whether to

transport the bibles content

through illustrations was the

reason for a strong dispute

that finally concluded in

Pope Gregory the Greats

argument that for illiterates

the pictures were most

helpful. The stories were

then told in pictures that

were kept as simple and clear

as possible, leaving out all

unnecessary details,

transporting only the main

message.

The discoveries of the Greek artists who precisely looked at the reality of the subject were

used but not further developed. The Byzantine artists knew about perspective and

foreshortening but considered it as less important. Most important was the transportation of

the divine message, pictures were rather symbolic. Characteristic for the illustration of the

human figures were the over-length and slimness of the body with small feet, the slender

almond-shaped face with large starring dark eyes under arched eye brows, a small mouth and

a long, slim and little curved nose. They wear glorious robes and hardly moved.

Although copying and adapting to ever-new context the standing, sitting and slightly moving

figures of the Greek and Roman artists, the Christian artists gave them a totally new soul, a

spiritual beauty.

Time and terrestrial space are replaced by eternal being under the golden transparency of the sky, the solemn frontal portraits seem to belong to a heavenly, not to a secular

court. (Janson, 1962: 218)

Fresco of the Anastasis

Chora Church


3.3 ICONS

Besides the religious art as decoration in churches

there was the genre called icon an image of

Christ, the Virgin or a saint, used as an object of

veneration in Orthodox churches and private

homes. This art spread together with the

Orthodox Religion, icons became an integral part

of the faith. People believed that the first pictures

of Christ and the Virgin had come to earth by the

will of God and that they were holy. Further

images were inspired by those first pictures and

had to follow strict rules. Artists again and again

copied prototypes.

The probably most famous icon is the Madonna

in Sta. Francesca Romana in Rome. With its

strictness of geometric forms and its smooth

shading the picture has a special power that

makes understand that people considered it

divine. A later example of a Byzantine icon is the

Madonna and Child on a Curved Throne,

showing the Madonna in graceful attitude with a

soft melancholic face expression, halo and a

brightly shining robe the throne from

exceptional perspective everything as if

reflecting from the golden heavenly background.

In the 8th century religious icons were banned by

Leo III who criticized that they were worshipped

as idols. This dispute is known as the Iconoclast

controversy. During that period the focus of

drawing moved to non religious subjects. Here

the artists were again influenced by the classic

art. The pathos and the emotional expression

were then integrated into later Christian art. The

drawings now called more to the feelings of the

beholder, Christ showing an expression of

sorrow, melancholia and compassion.

Madonna and Child on a

Curved Throne

Madonna

St. Francesca Romana


3.4 MOSAICS

Entering the church, one leaves the world of everyday life behind and immerses into a realm of light and color, in which precious marble and

shining mosaics bring to mind the glory of God. (Janson, 1962: 201)

Instead of marble the Christian artists used glass for their

mosaics. This material offered a richness of color including

gold. The tiny pieces of glass worked like mirrors giving

the impression of a sparkling immaterial film. This medium

perfectly symbolized the might of God and His religion.

3.5 SCULPTURE

Early Christians agreed that there should be no statues in

the House of God. They intended to make a clear

differentiation between the new faith and the old believes.

They wanted to clarify the nature of the Almighty and

Invisible God. No more life-size sculptures of a human

body were created. Only small flat reliefs decorated the

churches showing scenes from the bible and little plastics

out of ivory and metal were made.

Mosaic of the Koimesis in the Naos

Harbaville Triptychon

Christ as the Good Shepherd


4 CONCLUSION

The Byzantine artist was facing an immense challenge: to open to the Christian believer a

door to the Divine. To make him understand the Holy Word and feel the Omnipotence of the

Invisible God. He succeeded by re-creating on earth the splendor of the House of the Lord

in Paradise he built into the sky reaching domes that from inside gave the impression of

the firmament. He directed the churches to the east where the sun arises, to Jerusalem as

direction for prayer. His paintings uplifted the soul with a golden heavenly background,

showing tall figures of holy majesty in graceful attitude. His mosaics reflected divine

radiance. By studying the spiritual intensity of Byzantine artists work, one was able to gain

the awe of mystery of the Glory of God.

Where in the West the Byzantine style was replaced by the Romanic and eventually by the

Gothic architecture, in the East it had an important influence on Islamic architecture. After the

fall of the Byzantine Empire the Byzantine architecture was still exercised in Orthodox

countries and developed further to national forms.

Deesis Mosaic

Hagia Sophia


Literatur

Gombrich, E. H. (1972) The Story of Art. Phaidon Press Limited.

Mango, Cyril A. (1972) The art of the Byzantine Empire, 3121453. Prentice-Hall.

Myskja, Bjrn K. (2002) The sublime in Kant and Beckett. Walter de Gruyter.

Odahl, Charles Matson (2004) Constantine and the Christian Empire. Routledge.

Pothorn, Herbert (1979) Architectural Styles. New York.

Stokstad, Marilyn (2004) Medieval Art. Boulder.

German literature:

Janson, Horst W. (1962) DuMonts Kunstgeschichte unserer Welt. DuMont Schauberg.

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