This document discusses early Christian art from the 4th to 12th centuries CE. It covers topics such as: - How Christian art evolved from modest meeting houses to grand churches like Hagia Sophia under Emperor Constantine and his successors. - The development of Christian iconography and imagery over time, including increasing depictions of Christ as an adult and references to Old Testament stories. - Important artistic centers like Ravenna whose 6th century mosaics exemplified Byzantine style. - The debate around iconoclasm and destruction of religious images in the Byzantine Empire between the 8th-9th centuries.

1. Gardner’s Art Through the Ages, 12e

2. Europe and the Near East in Late Antiquity

12. Sarcophagus of Junius Bassus: ca. 359

29. Anthemius of Tralles & Isidorus of Miletus Hagia Sophia, Constantinpole, (Istanbul), Turkey, 532-537

30. Anthemius of Tralles & Isidorus of Miletus Hagia Sophia, Constantinpole, (Istanbul), Turkey, 532-537

31. Unfortunately nothing remains of the original Hagia Sophia, which was built on this site in the fourth century by Constantine the Great. Constantine was the first Christian emperor and the founder of the city of Constantinople, which he called "the New Rome." The Hagia Sophia was one of several great churches he built in important cities throughout his empire.

32. Hagia Sophia Constantinpole, (Istanbul), Turkey, 532-537 Following the destruction of Constantine's church, a second was built by his son Constantius and the emperor Theodosius the Great. This second church was burned down during the Nika riots of 532, though fragments of it have been excavated and can be seen today. Hagia Sophia was rebuilt in her present form between 532 and 537 under the personal supervision of Emperor Justinian I .

33. Hagia Sophia, Constantinople, (Istanbul), Turkey, 532-537 The characteristic Byzantine plainness and unpretentious of exterior( which, in case, also disguise the disguise the great scale), scarcely prepare us for the interior of the building.

34. Hagia Sophia, Constantinople, (Istanbul), Turkey, 532-537

35. Anthemius of Tralles & Isidorus of Miletus Hagia Sophia, Constantinople, (Istanbul), Turkey, 532-537

36. Justinian as world conqueror (Barberini Ivory) mid-6th century ivory 1 ft. 1 1/2 in. x 10 1/2 in. The reign of Justinian marks the beginning of the first golden age of Byzantine art.

37. San Vitale, Ravenna, Italy, 526-547 The church is unlike any of the other 6 th century churches of Ravenna. Indeed, it is unlike any other church in Italy because San Vitale is not a basilica. It is centrally planned, like Justinian’s churches in Constantinople.

38. San Vitale, Ravenna, Italy, 526-547 The design features two concentric octagons. The dome covered inner octagon rises above the surrounding octagon to provide the interior with clerestory lighting.

39. San Vitale, Ravenna, Italy, 526-547 The mosaics that decorate San Vitale’s choir and apse, like the building itself, must be regarded as among the most climatic achievements of Byzantine art.

40. Apse Mosaic San Vitale, Ravenna, Italy, 526-547, mosaic In the apse vault, a youthful Christ, seated on the orb of the world at the time of the second coming, extends the golden martyr’s wreath to Saint Vitalis.

41. Justinian, Bishop Maximianus and attendants north wall apse mosaic, San Vitale, Ravenna, Italy, ca. 547, mosaic Justinian himself stands in the middle, with soldiers to the left and clergy on the right, emphasizing that Justinian is the leader of both church and state of his empire.

42. Theodora and attendants south wall apse mosaic, San Vitale, Ravenna, Italy, ca. 547, mosaic

43. Abraham and the Three Angels ( Philoxeneos) , and the Sacrifice of Isaac north lunette mosaic, San Vitale, Ravenna, Italy, ca. 547, mosaic

44. Sacrifice of Abel, Sacrifice of Melchisedech north lunette mosaic, San Vitale, Ravenna, Italy, ca. 547, mosaic

45. Sant’Apollinare in Classe, Ravenna, Italy, 33-49 The Ravenna epoch closes with the church of Sant’Apollinare in Classe, where, in the great apse mosaic, the Byzantine style reaches full maturity.

46. Sant’Apollinare in Classe, Ravenna, Italy, 533-549

47. Saint Apollinaris amid sheep Sant’Apollinare in Classe Ravenna, Italy, 533-549, mosaic Saint Apollinaire stands beneath Christ’s Cross with his arms raised in prayer. Although the scene is set in a landscape, the Byzantine artist rejected the classical illusionism of earlier mosaics.

48. Saint Michael the Archangel early-6th century, ivory, 1 ft. 5 in. x 5 1/2 in. The prototype of St. Michael must have been a pagan Victory; the flowing Classical yet naturalistic drapery, the delicately incised wings, and the facial type and coiffure are of the pre-Christian tradition.

49. Justinian as world conqueror (Barberini Ivory) mid-6th century, ivory, 1 ft. 1 1/2 in. x 10 1/2 in.

50. Anicia Juliana Between Magnanimity and Prudence, folio 6 of the Vienna Dioskorides, from Honoratai, near Constantinople ca. 512, tempera on parchment 1 ft. 3 in. x 1 ft. 11 in. The physical world was the focus of one of the rare secular books to survive from the early Middle Ages. It is likely that the Vienna Dioskorides painters copied the 498 illustrations from classical manuscripts. The dedication page, however, cannot be a copy due to its portrait

51. Ascension of Christ, Rabbula Gospels From Zagba, Syria, 586, tempera on vellum 1 ft. 1 in. x 10 1/2 in. The Gospels do not mention the Virgin Mary as a witness of Christ’s Ascension. Her prominent position in the Rabbula Gospels is an early example of the important role Mary played in later medieval art.

53. Virgin (Theotokos) and Child between Saints Theodore and George, icon 6th or early 7th century, encaustic on wood, 2 ft. 3 in. x 1 ft. 7 3/8 in. Although traces of Greco-Roman illusionism are evident in the portrait, the bodies begin to be rendered in a new Byzantine manner.

54. Virgin (Theotokos) and Child enthroned Apse mosaic, Hagia Sophia, 867, mosaic Shortly after the repeal of iconoclasm, the emperor Basil I dedicated a huge new mosaic in the apse of Hagia Sophia depicting the Virgin and Child enthroned. It replaced one the iconoclasts destroyed.

55. Katholikon and Church of the Theotokos Hosios Loukas, Greece The Katholikon exemplifies church design during the second golden age of Byzantine art and architecture. Middle Byzantine churches typically are small and high shouldered, with a central dome on a drum and the exterior wall surfaces with decorative patterns, probably reflecting Islamic architecture.

56. Katholikon and Church of the Theotokos, Hosios Loukas, Greece Katholikon early 11th century, Church of the Theotokos, 10th century

57. Apse of the Katholikon, Hosios Loukas, Greece, 11th century, mosaic

58. Dome of the Katholikon, Hosios Loukas, Greece, 11th century, fresco

59. Dome of the Katholikon Hosios Loukas, Greece 11th century fresco

60. Crucifixion in the Church of the Dormition Daphni, Greece ca. 1090-1100 mosaic The Daphni Crucifixion is a subtle blend of the painterly Hellenistic style and the later more abstract and formalistic Byzantine style.

61. Saint Mark’s Cathedral Venice, Italy begun 1063 The revival on a grand scale of church buildings, featuring vast stretches of mosaic-covered walls, was not confined to the Greek-speaking Byzantine East. A resurgence of religious architecture and of the mosaicist’s art occurred in areas of the former Western Roman Empire.

62. Saint Mark’s Cathedral, Venice, Italy, begun 1063 The first St Mark's was a temporary building in the Doge's Palace, constructed in 828, when Venetian merchants stole the supposed relics of Saint Mark the Evangelist from Alexandria. This was replaced by a new church on its present site in 832; from the same century dates the first St Mark's Campanile (bell tower). The new church was burned in a rebellion in 976, rebuilt in 978 and again to form the basis of the present basilica since 1063.

63. interior of Saint Mark’s Cathedral Venice, Italy ca. 1180 mosaic Saint Mark’s has a central dome over the crossing and four other domes over the four equal arms of the Greek cross.

64. interior of Saint Mark’s Cathedral Venice, Italy ca. 1180 mosaic

65. Apse Cathedral at Monreale Monreale, Sicily, Italy ca. 1180-1190 mosaic

66. Pantocrator Cathedral at Monreale Monreale, Sicily, Italy ca. 1180-1190 mosaic

67. David composing the Psalms Paris Psalter ca. 950-970 tempera on vellum 14 1/8 in. x 10 1/4 in. Another example of a classical-revival style is a page from the book of the Psalms of David.

68. Virgin (Theotokos) and Child, icon Late 11th to early 12th century tempera on wood 2 ft. 6 1/2 in. x 1 ft. 9 in. Nothing in the Middle Byzantine art better exemplifies the rejection of the iconoclastic point of viewpoint than the return of the painted icon. After the restoration of images, icons multiplied by the thousands to meet public and private demand.

69. Anastasis apse fresco in parekklision of the Church of Christ in Chora Constantinpole, (Istanbul), Turkey, ca. 1310-1320, fresco Late Byzantine Art

70. Christ as Savior of Souls, icon early 14th century tempera, linen and silver on wood 3 ft. 1/4 in. x 2 ft. 2 1/2 in. Notable for the lavish use of finely etched silver foil, this icon typifies Byzantine eclecticism. Christ’s fully modeled head and neck contrast with the schematic linear folds of his garment.

71. Annunciation, reverse of 2-sided icon early 14th century tempera and linen on wood 3 ft. 1/4 in. x 2 ft. 2 3/2 in.

72. Andrei Rublyev Three Angels, icon ca. 1410 tempera on wood 4 ft. 8 in. x 3 ft. 9 in. In Russia, icon painting flourished for centuries, extending the life of the Byzantine style well beyond the Byzantine Empire in 1453.