What is Byzantine Architecture?
Byzantine architecture is undoubtedly one of the three great
forces in the world of architecture during the Middle Ages in Europe. This
architectural style developed during the reign of the Roman Emperor Justinian
during the years 527 and 565 AD.
The extensive use of mosaics and the implementation of
elevated Byzantine domes as a distinctive feature result in a contribution to
the quality of construction as one of the last engineering techniques of the
6th century.
History of Byzantine architecture
Byzantine architecture predominated in the eastern half of
the Roman Empire during the reign of Justinian the Great, however, influences
spread over the centuries from 330 until the fall of Constantinople in 1453 and
were incorporated into the ecclesiastical architecture of the present day.
The contributions of Byzantine architecture dramatically
influenced later medieval architecture throughout Europe and the Near East, and
it became the main progenitor of the Renaissance and Ottoman architectural
traditions that emerged in the wake of its collapse.
Much of what we now call Byzantine architecture is
ecclesiastical, that is, church-related. Christianity began to flourish after
the Edict of Milan in 313 AD when the Roman Emperor Constantine proclaimed his
own Christianity, which would legitimize the new religion; Christians would no
longer be routinely persecuted.
Religious freedom allowed Christians to worship openly and
without threat, as well as a rapid spread of the new religion. The need for
places of worship expanded, as did the need for new approaches to the design of
Byzantine buildings and works.
Hagia Irene (also known as Haghia Eirene or Aya İrini
Kilisesi) in Istanbul, Turkey is the site of the first Christian church built
by Constantine in the 4th century. Most of these early Byzantine churches were
destroyed but rebuilt on their rubble by Emperor Justinian.
Characteristics of Byzantine architecture
In Constantinople, as the Roman Empire moved eastward (and
also toward Christianity) with its new capital, it adopted a more sensual and
ambitious architecture than ever before. This Byzantine style, with
increasingly exotic Byzantine domes and richer and richer mosaics, spread
westward to Ravenna and Venice and northward to Moscow.
Most Byzantine churches and basilicas have high domes. As a
consequence, they created wide open spaces in the centers of the churches,
increasing the sense of grace and light.
The round arch is a fundamental characteristic of the
Byzantine style. Magnificent golden mosaics with their graphic simplicity and
immense power brought light and warmth to the heart of the churches. Byzantine
capitals break with the classical conventions of ancient Greece and Rome.
Sinuous lines and naturalistic forms are the precursors of
the Gothic style. The first half of the Middle Ages was also a time of research
into construction methods and materials. Skylight windows became a popular
means of letting natural light and ventilation into a dark, smoky building.
Elements of Byzantine Architecture
The structural use of Byzantine pendentives to raise
Byzantine domes to new heights was used by Byzantine engineers. A dome can rise
from the top of a vertical cylinder, such as a silo, giving height to the dome.
The exterior of the church of San Vitale in Ravenna, Italy,
like the Hagia Irene, is characterized by the construction of silo-like
pendentives. A good example of pendentives seen from the interior is the
interior of the Hagia Sophia (Ayasofya) in Istanbul, which is one of the most
famous Byzantine structures in the world.
- Multiple domes - The proliferation of domes began, reaching its peak at St. Mark's in Venice, which features a dome on each arm of the floor plan and another in the center.
- Mosaics - Golden mosaics with a simple design and immense power were clear, warm and conveyed mystery to Byzantine churches.
- Raised and semicircular arches - The semicircular arch is a fundamental element in the Byzantine style. The arches of the octagonal portico of Santa Fosca in Torcello, Italy, are a bridge between contemporary Islamic design and Christian design.
- Naturalistic ornamentation on capitals - Byzantine capitals break with classical Greek and Roman convention. Their ornamentation is of sinuous lines and natural forms, pioneering the Gothic.
Materials of Byzantine architecture
Bricks were used to create walls by laying two sides and
pouring rubble and mortar between them. The cement mortar was made with lime,
sand and bricks or crushed stones. In some instances, a reinforcing layer made
entirely of bricks ran through the entire wall. Unlike Roman walls, the
Byzantine version did not use core concrete (pozzolana), and if the facing was
damaged, then eventually the core would be damaged as well.
In the case of the Byzantine builders, a much thicker layer
of mortar was used between the bricks, probably as a cost-saving exercise,
since fewer bricks were needed.
Unfortunately, as the mortar dried, it warped and many
Byzantine buildings suffered distortion or even partial collapse. Brick was
also used to make domes, arches and vaults, in many cases using bricks twice
the standard size.
As an alternative to brick, ashlar stone blocks were used,
which were the most popular in the eastern region of the Byzantine Empire. In
some buildings, especially in the 6th century AD, the two were combined and had
a lower part of brick and an upper part of stone blocks.
These materials and their use in Byzantine buildings
remained virtually unchanged until the 14th century. Marble, an expensive
material, was generally used for Byzantine columns, capitals, cornices,
architraves and decorative elements such as door frames, window grills and
floors.
Some of the building exteriors were plastered, but this was
not common. Greater attention was paid to interior architecture, where
generally all walls were covered with plaster, stucco, marble slabs, Byzantine
painting and mosaics.
Byzantine imperial buildings and the most important
basilicas received a greater number of marbles than anywhere else, with the
Proconesios of the island of Proconesus in the Sea of Marmara being the most
common. In the Western Roman tradition, the prestige of colored marble
continued, so it was imported from places like Egypt and Phrygia. The roofs of
churches and houses were made of wood in the vast majority of cases.
Eastern and Western Byzantine Architecture
Flavius Justinian was not born in Rome, but in Tauresium,
Macedonia, in Eastern Europe, around 482. Because of his birthplace he is one
of the main factors that made the Christian emperor's reign change the shape of
architecture between 527 and 565.
Justinian was a ruler of Rome, but he grew up with the
people of the Eastern world. He was a Christian leader who brought two worlds
together; construction methods and architectural details were passed back and
forth. Buildings that had previously been constructed similarly to those in
Rome took on more local and eastern influences.
Justinian reconquered the Western Roman Empire, which had
been taken over by the barbarians, and Eastern architectural traditions were
introduced into the West. The mosaic of Justinian's image in the Basilica of
San Vitale in Ravenna, Italy, is a testament to the Byzantine influence in the
Ravenna area, which remains a major center of Italian Byzantine architecture.
Church of Santa Sofia
The most important and most famous Byzantine church is the
Church of St. Sophia in Constantinople, consecrated to the holy wisdom of God.
It was built in 532-537 AD during the reign of Justinian on the site of two
more modest versions dating from the 4th century AD. The building is unique and
was never equaled in size or design by any later Byzantine building.
The basic, rectangular form measures 74.6 x 69.7 meters and
is formed by a vault 55 meters high above the ground and rests on four massive
arches with four supporting pendentives. This was a spectacular achievement for
Justinian and he boasted that he had managed to beat Solomon, but it was all
too good to be true, and the dome collapsed in 558 AD, its cracks
catastrophically aggravated by two earthquakes.
It was therefore replaced with a structurally stronger,
channeled and steep dome 31.8 meters in diameter, which still survives today
(despite partial collapses in A.D. 989 and 1346). Hagia Sophia was the largest
church in the world until the 16th century and one of the most decorated with
many of its brilliant mosaics and murals that still impress visitors today.
