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PART II
THE MIDDLE AGES
CHAPTER 8
EARLY JEWISH, EARLY CHRISTIAN, AND
BYZANTINE ART
Closer Look:
Baptism of Christ and Procession of Apostles, Gospels, and Thrones; Baptistery of the
Orthodox, Ravenna, Italy
Sant ‘Apollinaire Nuovo
The Sarcophagus of Junius Bassus
Google Earth Coordinates:
Church of Santa Sabina, Rome
Video Links:
Galla Placidia
On the discovery of Dura Europos
Compare and Contrast
Image Flashcards
Term Flashcards
Early Jewish Art
Key Images
West wall of sanctuary of synagogue, Dura-Eurapos, Syria, p. 237, 8.1
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religions go both ways, although both Jewish and Christian art forms were strongly
influenced by the Romans.
Early Christian Art
Key Images
Painted Ceiling, Catacomb of Santissimi Pietro e Marcellino, Rome, p. 242, 8.4
Sarcophagus, Santa Maria Antiqua, Rome, p. 243, 8.5
Model of the Baptistery, the Christian Meeting House at Dura-Europos, p. 244, 8.6
Informing Art: The Life of Jesus, p. 241
Primary Source: The Book of the Popes (Liber Pontificalis), p. 244
Materials and Techniques: Mosaics, p. 248
The earliest Christian art can be found in the Roman catacombs. The primary value of
early Christian frescoes in catacombs was symbolic. Christ is often represented in
early Christian art as a shepherd, which was in keeping with the prohibition against
image making.
church, known as a basilica-plan church, was modeled on the basilica with the
addition of a transept. The orientation of the early Christian church was also critical,
with the apse pointing to the east, in the direction of Jerusalem.
Illustrated manuscripts played an important role in disseminating Early Christian
imagery, and early Christians sponsored duplication of sacred texts on a large scale.
One of the earliest surviving books that illustrate the Bible is an early-fifth-century
fragment, the Quedlinburg Itala (8.18).
Byzantine Art: Early Byzantine Art
Key Images
Exterior of San Vitale, Ravenna, p. 255, 8.23
Interior (view toward the apse), San Vitale, Ravenna, p. 255, 8.24
Emperor Justinian and His Attendants, San Vitale, Ravenna, p. 256, 8.25
Primary Source: Procopius of Caesarea (Sixth Century), From Buildings, p. 260
Middle Byzantine Art
Key Images
Page with Joshua and the Emissaries from Gibeon, from the Joshua Roll, p. 266, 8.38
Harbaville Triptych, p. 268, 8.40
Christ Crowning Romanos and Eudokia
Interior (facing west), Church of the Dormition, Daphni, p. 269, 8.43
Primary Source: St. Theodore the Studite (759-826 CE), From Second and Third
Refutations of the Iconoclasts, p. 266
Informing Art: Biblical and Celestial Beings, p. 273
Late Byzantine Art
Key Images
Madonna Enthroned, p. 274, 8.49
Ironically, the greatest number of Early Byzantine monuments are in Ravenna, Italy,
and not in Constantinople (modern Istanbul). San Vitale is the most important
building of this period, begun in 526 under Ostrogothic rule. In Constantinople, the
combination of basilica and central-plan features.
The development of Byzantine Art was disrupted by the Iconoclastic Controversy
which dates from 726 843 CE. The conflict began with an edict from the Byzantine
emperor Leo III in 726 CE prohibiting religious images. This conflict continued for
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During the early tenth century, a classical revival occurred in Byzantine Art. This
was followed by an emphasis on the emotional content of biblical narratives.
Late Byzantine pictorial art utilized illusionistic techniques familiar in Roman wall
painting.
Key Terms/Places/Names
liturgy
catacombs
lunettes
parchment
vellum
manuscript illumination
Discussion Questions
1. How did the Biblical prohibition against image making affect the development of
early Christian art?
2. What was the Iconoclastic Controversy and how did it affect secular and religious
art?
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8. What does the positioning of the imperial couple next to Christ on the ivory of Christ
Crowning Romanos and Eudokia (8.41) suggest?
Resources
Books
Boyd, Susan A. Byzantine Art. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1979.
Carr, Annemarie Weyl. Byzantine Illumination, 1150 1250: The Study of a Provincial
Tradition. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1987.
DVDs
Empires: Peter and Paul and the Christian Revolution. (2002). PBS Paramount. 120 min.
In Search of History: The Catacombs of Rome (2008). History Channel. 50 min.