Palaces in Constantinople
The imperial district of Byzantine Constantinople, with the Great Palace and the approximate locations of its main buildings (based on literary descriptions), the Hippodrome, the Hagia Sophia and the surrounding structures.
Palace
(παλάτιον), an official residence, such as the residence of the emperor. The term derives from the Palatium complex on the Palatine Hill in Rome, the only official dwelling of the Roman emperors until the late 3rd C.; subsequently the term entered general use.
Imperial Palaces
During the Tetrarchy and on into the 4th C., establishment of new capitals (Antioch, Milan, Trier) brought about the proliferation of imperial palaces. The Great Palace in Constantinople, begun by Constantine I, is the final product of that age. Other, later palaces built in Constantinople included the 5th-C. Boukoleon and Hormisdas palaces, the 10th-C. Myrelaion palace, the 11th-C. Mangana palace, the 12th-C. Blachernai palace, and the late 13th-C. Tekfur Saray1. Emperors also built palaces away from Constantinople: for example, the 6th-C. Rhegion palace (A.M. Mansel, 6 CEB, vol. 2 [Paris 1951] 255–60) and the 9th-C. Bryas palace (S. Eyice, Belleten 23, no.89 [1959] 79–111).
On the basis of archaeological and textual evidence, the historical development of palace architecture is marked by characteristic changes in the relationship between the building and its urban setting. Initially (4th–6th C.), the complex was open toward the city, continuing Roman practice. Decline of cities (7th–8th C.) brought about the emergence of the fortified palace, reflecting a growing concern for security provided not only by city walls but also by those of the complex itself. In the 13th and 14th C. the urban palaceblock made its appearance. Probably under Western influence, in Byz. (e.g., Mistra) the type was characterized by continued segregation of the building from the urban environment.
Palaces of the Nobility
It is not clear when the nobility began to build palacelike mansions: one 12th-C. historian (Zon. 3:767.6–8) inveighs against the relatives of Alexios I who erected oikoi as large as a polis and luxurious as a palace, while another (Kinn. 266.7–9) relates that dignitaries decorated their mansions with history painting and scenes representing the emperor's hunting exploits. The palace described in the poem Digenes Akritas was an elaborate complex that included a large garden, bathhouse, church, and main building, which was decorated with biblical and classical figures rather than an “imperial” program.Slobodan Ćurčić, Alexander Kazhdan
Kazhdan, Alexander, ed. The Oxford Dictionary of Byzantium. New York: Oxford University Press, 1991.oxfordreference
The Byzantine court : source of power and culture : papers from the second international Sevgi Gönül Byzantine Studies Symposium, İstanbul 21-23 June 2010 by Call Number: DF501.5 .I58 2010bISBN: 6055250179Publication Date: 2010The proceedings of the Second International Sevgi Gonul Byzantine Studies Symposium held in Istanbul in June 2010 are published here under four headings: The first chapter includes seven papers on Byzantine palace architecture. Second chapter includes nine papers on the Byzantine court as the center of imperial power. Third chapter includes seven papers on the ceremonies held at the court and in the city. Last chapter on court culture and visual arts presents seven papers.
The vision of the palace of the Byzantine emperors as a heavenly Jerusalem by Call Number: DF531 .C37 2012ISBN: 9788879885669Publication Date: 2012The ideological construct of the court of the emperor as a reflection of the heavenly court has a long tradition that finds its roots in Late Antiquity, having an important impact on Byzantine imagery. This book concentrates on the role of the imperial residence – the primary setting for court ceremonial – and on the ways it reflected the heavenly abode of God in the conceptualisation of imperial imagery and palatine architecture, in Late Antiquity and early Byzantium. Through an essentially art historical approach, the monograph considers a wide range of sources, asserting that architectural, artistic, and written evidence, all converge to convey the vision of the palace, that is, how a real architectural structure, which was at once the residence of the emperor and the heart of the imperial administration, was conceived and/or meant to be perceived. The ruins of late antique palaces, ekphraseis of palaces, and images of palatine architecture are the epistemological means at the centre of this study. The purpose of this book is to unravel how the real earthly palace became associated with, and the model for, the heavenly residence. This hermeneutics of the visual images of palaces – since literary, artistic, and architectural evidence for the palace, all bear a strong visual impact – will shed light on a complex mirror effect, that between the real imperial palace and its ideal counterpart. Ultimately, the monograph will show that the palace's homology to the Heavenly Jerusalem relied upon – and also relayed – the sacred nature of imperial power in Late Antiquity and Byzantium.
İstanbul'daki Bizans sarayları by Call Number: NA1370 .I88 2011ISBN: 9751735645Publication Date: 2011Catalogue published on the occasion of the exhibition "Byzantine Palaces in Istanbul" opened on 21st June 2010 by the Istanbul Archaeological Museums with the support of the Vehbi Koc Foundation. The exhibition was designed to accompany the symposium titled "The Byzantine Court: Source of Power and Culture" and it presented the finds from salvage excavations. Naturally, the Great Palace occupies a great place in the exhibition and its catalogue. Furthermore, selected items from the palaces of Bukoleon, Antigonos, Blacherna, Myrelaion, Rhegion, Mangana, Botaneiates, and Hebdomon are presented. Although the items are not of great spectacle, they provide us with invaluable information regarding the decoration of the now lost buildings. The catalogue is further enhanced with 3-D reconstruction drawings by T. Oner.
Walking thru Byzantium Great Palace Region by Call Number: NA370 .W35 2007ISBN: 9944099406Publication Date: 2007Walking Thru Byzantium uniquely combines a walking tour of the Great Palace area with computer generated reconstructions of its various buildings and of the region. While scholars will continue to puzzle over the exact forms, locations, and identities of its components, this small guidebook challenges us to visualise one of the great settings of world history as it leads us in the footsteps of emperors.
The great palace of Constantinople by Call Number: DR725 .P29ISBN: 0766196178Publication Date: 2007In the following account of the Palace of Constantinople, the Hippodrome, and the neighboring Augustaion, I often recall the difficulties of the task. Students of the Palace as it is presented in the latest works of Greek and Western writers, can form some idea of the confused nature of the subject, which, indeed, none admit more frequently than the writers themselves.
Byzantine Court Culture from 829 To 1204 by Call Number: DF521 .B934 1997ISBN: 0884023087Publication Date: 1995-01-01The imperial court in Constantinople has been central to the outsider's vision of Byzantium. However, in spite of its fame in literature and scholarship, there have been few attempts to analyze the Byzantine court in its entirety as a phenomenon. The studies in this volume aim to provide a unified composition by presenting Byzantine courtly life in all its interconnected facets.
One important theme that unites these studies is the attention paid to describing the effects of a change in the social makeup of the court during this period and the reflection of these changes in art and architecture. These changes in social composition, mentality, and material culture of the court demonstrate that, as in so many other aspects of Byzantine civilization, the image of permanence and immutability projected by the forms of palace life was more apparent than real. As this new work shows, behind the golden facade of ceremony, rhetoric, and art, there was constant development and renewal.
Pseudo-Kodinos the Constantinopolitan Court - Offices and Ceremonies by Call Number: DF531 .P7713 2013ISBN: 9780754667520Publication Date: 2013-12-13The work known as Pseudo-Kodinos, the fourteenth-century text which is one of two surviving ceremonial books from the Byzantine empire, is presented here for the first time in English translation. With facing page Greek text and the first in-depth analysis in the form of commentary and individual studies on the hierarchy, the ceremonies, court attire, the Blachernai palace, lighting, music, gestures and postures, this volume makes an important new contribution to the study of the Byzantine court, and to the history and culture of Byzantium more broadly. The unique traits of this ceremony book include the combination of hierarchical lists of court officials with protocols of ceremonies; a detailed description of the clothing used at court, in particular, hats and staffs; an account of the functions of the court title holders, a description of the ceremonies of the year which take place both inside the palace and outside; the service of the megas domestikos in the army, protocols for the coronation of the emperor, the promotions of despot, sebastokrator and caesar, of the patriarch; a description of the mourning attire of the emperor; protocol for the reception of a foreign bride in Constantinople all these are analysed here. Developments in ceremonial since the tenth-century Book of Ceremonies are discussed, as is the space in which ceremonial was performed, along with a new interpretation of the ’other palace’, the Blachernai. The text reveals the anonymous authors’ interest in the past, in the origins of practices and items of clothing, but it is argued that Pseudo-Kodinos presents descriptions of actual practice at the Byzantine court, rather than prescriptions.
Court Ceremonies and Rituals of Power in Byzantium and the Medieval Mediterranean by Call Number: DF531 .C68 2013ISBN: 9789004256866Publication Date: 2013-09-19Publicly performed rituals and ceremonies form an essential part of medieval political practice and court culture. This applies not only to western feudal societies, but also to the linguistically and culturally highly diversified environment of Byzantium and the Mediterranean basin. The continuity of Roman traditions and cross-fertilization between various influences originating from Constantinople, Armenia, the Arab-Muslim World, and western kingdoms and naval powers provide the framework for a distinct sphere of ritual expression and ceremonial performance. This collective volume, placing Byzantium into a comparative perspective between East and West, examines transformative processes from Late Antiquity to the Middle Ages, succession procedures in different political contexts, phenomena of cross-cultural appropriation and exchange, and the representation of rituals in art and literature. Contributors are Maria Kantirea, Martin Hinterberger, Walter Pohl, Andrew Marsham, Bjorn Weiler, Eric J. Hanne, Antonia Giannouli, Jo Van Steenbergen, Stefan Burkhardt, Ioanna Rapti, Jonathan Shepard, Panagiotis Agapitos, Henry Maguire, Christine Angelidi and Margaret Mullett.
Neue Forschungen und Restaurierungen im byzantinischen Kaiserpalast von Istanbul : Akten der Internationalen Fachtagung vom 6.-8. November 1991 in Istanbul by Call Number: NA109.T9 N484 1999ISBN: 3700124759Publication Date: 1999Das forschungsprojekt "Palastmosaik von Konstantinopel" wind von der Österreichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften,dem Fonds zur Förderung der wissenschaftlichen Forschung und von der Generaldirektion der Monumente und Museen der Türkei getragen.
Churches and Monasteries
Church
(ἐκκλησία, lit. “assembly”). The Byz. did not develop a systematic ecclesiology. Instead, for them the church was a sacramental communion that included not only the earthly oikoumene but the Kingdom of Heaven as well, with angels, saints, and God himself: in the words of Isidore of Pelousion (PG 78:685A), a “union of saints hammered out of true faith and perfect behavior.” In general, however, the Byz. church rejected the claims of Donatism and Montanism, whose followers sought to exclude sinners from membership in the church. Sanctity and unity were considered basic features of the church, contrasted with the multiplicity and falsity of paganism and heresy. The unity of the church was underlined by such epithets as katholike (general) and oikoumenike (universal), and its dogmatic correctness by the epithet orthodoxos (of right belief).
Administration of the church was based on patristic texts and the canons of ecumenical and local councils, codified beginning in the 6th C. and regularized in the Nomokanon of Fifty Titles. The Byz. church did not have a single head, rejecting the idea of papal primacy, but embraced the concept of pentarchy in which patriarchs and the pope maintained administrative control of their individual territory. In fact, the loss of the East to the Arabs in the 7th C. and the separation of the West made the patriarch of Constantinople the de facto head of the Byz. church. The Byz. defended the concept that the authority of the council was superior to the power of the patriarch; in an extreme form, an anonymous treatise of the 10th C. tried to justify the superiority of an assembly of metropolitans over the patriarch of Constantinople (Darrouzès, infra 24–29). On the contrary, Niketas of Amaseia defended the thesis that the patriarch was the supreme arbiter in the ecclesiastical sphere. With regard to the state, theoreticians insisted that the church was superior to the civil administration (e.g., John Chrysostom, PG 61:507.42–43), in contrast to the attempt of the state to treat the emperor as the supervisor (“bishop”) of the church's external affairs. The author of the Epanagoge presented the theory of two equal powers, that of the emperor, who deals with material matters, and that of the patriarch, responsible for mankind's spiritual health and salvation. In practice, however, civil administration usually had the upper hand over the church.
As an institution, the church possessed an established organization based on a hierarchy of rank (bishop, priest, deacon, etc.), on administrative gradations (patriarchate-metropolis-bishopric, etc.), on regular assemblies (councils), and on the system of ecclesiastical officials. Its privileges included a special canon law distinct from civil law, and various exemptions for the clergy. The church obtained jurisdiction over the clergy and in some matters over the laity. Its material basis consisted of the ownership of land, imperial grants (solemnia), movable property (esp. liturgical vessels and vestments), and voluntary donations and bequests; the mandatory tithe was a relatively late innovation. Ecclesiastical property was in theory inalienable, and attempts to confiscate it aroused serious conflicts (e.g., the case of Leo of Chalcedon).
Being a holy body, the church could expel sinful members, both temporarily and permanently (by means of excommunication). Missions expanded the church's influence by spreading Christianity to new territories, baptizing heathens and heretics, and converting Jews and Muslims. The Byz. church had no monopoly on education, but it obtained supervision over teaching and offered episcopal posts to many outstanding scholars. Its means of salvation were challenged by some mystics who, like Symeon the Theologian, considered the individual path of vision of the divine light as superior to the activity of the institutionalized church. The political role of individual bishops was significant in secular affairs, but the influence of episcopal organization had to compete with monasteries (see Monasticism) that often managed to obtain independence from local bishops (stauropegion) and even from the patriarch.Timothy E. Gregor
Kazhdan, Alexander, ed. The Oxford dictionary of Byzantium. New York: Oxford University Press, 1991.oxfordreference
Monastery
(μονή), complex of buildings housing monks or nuns (see also Nunnery). The term is used primarily for a koinobion, lavra, or an idiorrhythmic monastery. Byz. monastic architecture was standardized at a fairly early date, with many of the common elements appearing at Sohag in Egypt, Qalʿat Semʿān in Syria, and St. Catherine on Mt. Sinai. A monastery was often contained within strong defensive walls, along the inside of which were located the dormitories of the monks, stables, workshops, and storage buildings. These surrounded an open space, with the principal church (the katholikon) at its center. In front of the church was the phiale. One side of the enclosure, most commonly that facing the church, was occupied by the refectory (trapeza). Other buildings could include a bath and an infirmary.
Monasteries varied greatly in size, ranging from a minimum of three (later eight to ten) monks to several hundred (A.-M. Talbot, GOrThR 30 [1985] 4f, 18–20). They were located in both town and countryside but were most numerous in Constantinople and the holy mountains such as Mt. Olympos and Mt. Athos. A. Bryer estimated that about 1,000 different monasteries are recorded in the Byz. sources (SChH 16 [1979] 219f, n.3), about one-third of them in Constantinople (a statistic perhaps skewed by the nature of the available sources).
There were no monastic “orders” as in the West; thus the organization of each monastery varied and was prescribed by its typikon. There were nonetheless some connections between monasteries, for example, between those on the same holy mountain or between a monastery and its smaller affiliated establishments, the metochia. The typika of some monasteries were closely modeled on those of earlier foundations. Monasteries were variously classified as imperial, patriarchal (see Stauropegion), or episcopal, and as private or independent.
In general each monastery had a superior (hegoumenos), steward (oikonomos), sacristan (ekklesiarches), and other officials charged with supervision of the refectory, treasury, and archives. Most monasteries possessed agricultural lands and other properties that provided food for the monks and revenues to maintain the buildings and operations of the monastery. (See also Monasticism.)Mark J. Johnson, Alice-Mary Talbot
Kazhdan, Alexander, ed.The Oxford dictionary of Byzantium. New York: Oxford University Press, 1991.oxfordreference
The Mosaics and Frescoes of St. Mary Pammakaristos (Fethiye Camii) at Istanbul by Call Number: NA3780 .B38 1978ISBN: 0884020754Publication Date: 1978-01-01"Next to the Kariye Camii, the church of St. Mary Pammakaristos (Fethiye Camii) contains the most important series of mosaics of the Palaeologan period remaining in Istanbul as well as a fragmentary cycle of frescoes. These decorate a splendid funerary chapel built about 1310... The text discusses the history of the monument until its conversion into a mosque in 1587, the iconography and arrangement of the mosaics, their style, and their place in the development of Late Byzantine art."
Hagia Sophia : ho naos tēs Hagias tou Theou Sophias = Hagia Sophia : the church of the Holy Wisdom of God by Call Number: NA5870.A9 D48 2004ISBN: 9789608326149Publication Date: 2004avishly illustrated with color photography by Ersal Yavi, this is an oversized coffee-table book published under the aegis of the Aristotle Onassis Foundation. The text is bilingual (Greek and English. The 90-page opening section is Professor Detorakis' "Brief Historical Outline and Description of the Monument;" the rest of the book is largely entirely photography, with quotations from various texts and descriptions of the images on view. 248 pp altogether, including Notes. A splendidly illustrated, handsome book that serves as a great keepsake of this unique landmark.
Chora : the scroll of heaven by Call Number: NA5870.K3 M36 2000Publication Date: 2000CHORA The Scroll of Heaven Text by Cyril Mango Photographs by Ahmet Ertug The building that was originally the Monastery of the Holy Savior in Chora is regarded as one of the most sublime examples of Byzantine art because of its early 14th century mosaics and frescoes. Chora: The Scroll of Heaven takes the reader on a scholarly and artistic journey that delves all the details of this jewel-like structure. Text by Cyril Mango, one of the most respected names today in the field of Byzantine art history, photographed by Ahmet Ertug.
The Monks and Monasteries of Constantinople, C. 350-850 by Call Number: BX2660 .H38 2007ISBN: 9780521848213Publication Date: 2008-02-07Between 350 and 850 Constantinople emerged as both the greatest city of the Mediterranean world and a monastic centre of unparalleled importance. Drawing upon a wide range of sources, including a rich body of hagiographical evidence, this study documents the historical relationship between the city and its monks during this crucial formative period. Monks and nuns played a key role from the beginning. In 350 their numbers were few, yet their impact on local politics and the church was significant. By 850 their presence was felt everywhere - from the world of the imperial court and church, to the local economy, elite culture, social services and popular piety. This dramatic rise in the influence of local monasticism was the result of its impressive numerical growth over time, and hard-won success in adapting the singular call of the monastic life to the challenges of the great medieval metropolis and imperial capital.
Hagia Sophia by Call Number: NA5870.A9 M28 1988ISBN: 0500279454Publication Date: 2002-05-01Rowland Mainstone's description of one of Christendom's oldest churches is based on years of detailed observation and critical reading of historical source material. This book offers an authoritative account of the the building's provenance.
The Monastery of Lips (Fenari Isa Camii) at İstanbul by Call Number: NA5870.F46 M3Publication Date: 1968“The frequent fires that have caused such terrible destruction in Constantinople have, in some respects, facilitated archaeological investigation and the study of Byzantine monuments. As is well known, the Byzantine churches that had been converted into mosques usually stood tightly surrounded by wooden houses in the center of labyrinthine Turkish quarters. Following the disappearance of these obstructing houses, many Byzantine monuments have emerged as isolated ruins in the midst of wide open spaces. This has been the case with the Monastery of Lips to which the Empress Theodora added towards the end of the thirteenth century the church of the Prodromos, intended as a mausoleum for herself and the family of the Palaeologi. As a result of the terrible fire of 1917 which reduced to ashes nearly a quarter of the city, the skeleton of the two contiguous churches (Fenari Isa Camii) now rises as an imposing ruin in the middle of the deserted plain of Etmeydan,' in the valley of the Lycus, at a distance of 670 m. southwest of the Fatih mosque, at one time the famous church of the Holy Apostle.”
The Pantokrator Monastery in Constantinople by Call Number: BX385.I752 P366 2013ISBN: 9781614515999Publication Date: 2013-09-17The Monastery of Pantokrator, founded by John II Komnenos and his wife Piroska-Irene, is not only one of the most important and most impressive monastic complexes of the Komnenian age, it is also one of the few to occupy a key position in the life of Constantinople in the Palaiologan age, given that its mortuary chapel (Heroon) was also the last resting place of many members of the latter dynasty. The first attempt to chronicle its history, based on the texts known at the time, was undertaken by G. Moravscik (1932). Interest was rekindled by P. Gautier's critical edition of its Typikon (1971), and more recently by restoration work on its buildings. This volume brings together a comprehensive selection of all the texts concerning or connected with the Monastery of Pantokrator, and through them it demonstrates the Monastery's importance and its role throughout the history of the Byzantine Empire―a role that has received insufficient attention, given that older studies have tended to focus on the 12th century. The texts cover the situation in Constantinople before the Monastery was founded, the historical and cultural context within which it was established, its Typikon (monastic formulary), the descriptions of Slav and Western travellers, the Byzantine texts (homiletic, historical, hagiographic, and poetic) relating to the Monastery and its history from the 12th to the 15th century, the Byzantine officials associated with it, and the celebration of the principal festivals in its churches. It also contains critical editions of and commentaries on the two versions of the Synaxarion of Irene Komnene, a speech referring to the Empress's associate in the construction of the Monastery, another on the translation of the icon of St. Demetrios from the Church of St. Demetrios in Thessalonica to the Monastery of Pantokrator, an Office of the Translation of the Holy Stone, the verse Synaxarion composed for the consecration of the Monastery, and the known and unpublished poems by Byzantine poets (12th-15th c.) relating to it, as well as an extensive bibliography.
Restoring Byzantium : the Kariye Camii in Istanbul and the Byzantine Institute restoration by Call Number: NA5870.K3 R47 2004ISBN: 1884919154Publication Date: 2004This catalogue brings together scholars who have studied aspects of the Kariye Camii's art, architecture, and history. Their essays and the extensive section of plates are meant as an introduction to the monument, allowing the reader to explore further its Byzantine and later story as well as the multifaceted story of its scholarly rediscovery and restoration in the nineteenth and twentieth century.
Kariye Camii, yeniden = The Kariye Camii Reconsidered by Call Number: NA5870.K3 T44 2007ISBN: 9789759123823Publication Date: 2007Bu kitap, İstanbul Pera Müzesi'nde Nisan-Temmuz 2007 tarihleri arasında düzenlenmesine katkıda bulunduğumuz bir sergiden doğdu. Kariye. Bir Anıt, İki Anıtsal Kişilik. Theodoros Metokhites'ten Thomas Whittemore'a adını taşıan sergide Kariye'nin öyküsü onu restore eden iki önemli kişi açısından anlatılıyordu-bu kişilerden 14. yüzyılın başlarında yapıya bugün hayranlıkla seyrettiğimiz bezemeyi kazandıran Theodoros Metokhites, diğeri ise 20. yüzyılın ortalarında Amerika Bizans Enstitüsü tarafından büyük bir restorasyon projesinin başlatılmasını sağlayarak yapıyı günümüz araştırmacılarının dikkatine sunan Thomas Whittemore'dur.
The Hypotyposis of the Monastery of the Theotokos Evergetis, Constantinople (11th-12th Centuries) by Call Number: BX388.T4 J67 2012ISBN: 9781409436874Publication Date: 2016-03-31This book forms part of the Evergetis Project which aims to investigate all surviving texts associated with the Monastery of the Theotokos Evergetis founded in 1049 near Constantinople. A book-length introduction sets out the historical significance of the house for the development of Byzantine monasticism and discusses its administration, liturgy and way of life. An English translation of the Hypotyposis (the monastery's foundation document) is provided, accompanied by detailed notes. Previous scholarship on the authorship of the Hypotyposis and the evolution of the text is discussed and linguistic analysis used to suggest that traces of the original foundation document by Paul Evergetinos can be identified within it. The Hypotyposis was widely used as a model for later Byzantine and Slavonic typika and the precise relationship of these documents one to the other is demonstrated in detail. The volume also includes prosopographical material on the known patrons of the monastery, a discussion of its library, English translations of later Greek and Latin texts referring to the monastery and a suggested reconstruction of Paul Evergetinos' original foundation document.
Der Geometrische Entwurf der Hagia Sophia in Istanbul by Call Number: NA5870.A9 G46 2005ISBN: 3039106570Publication Date: 2005-04-18Die Hagia Sophia in Konstantinopel/Istanbul wurde im Auftrag Kaiser Justinians I. in den Jahren 532-537 von den Architekten Anthemios von Tralles und Isidoros von Milet erbaut und galt schon im 6. Jahrhundert als Achtes Weltwunder. Von den Bauplänen ist nichts erhalten geblieben, und so stellt sich die Frage, wie der Wunderbau entworfen worden ist. Volker Hoffmann und Nikolaos Theocharis haben in mehrjähriger Forschungsarbeit eine Antwort auf diese Frage gesucht. Diese präsentieren sie mit 42 Plakaten erstmals 2005 an einer Ausstellung in Istanbul einem breiteren Publikum. Sie belegen, dass die Architekten von einer einzigen Entwurfsfigur (die zugleich «Weltmodell» ist) ausgegangen sind: von einem Quadrat mit einem In- und Umkreis. Daraus wurden streng geometrisch drei weitere Entwurfsfiguren entwickelt und aus ihnen – wiederum konsequent geometrisch – sowohl der Grundriss als auch der Aufriss des Kirchenbaus gewonnen. Neben der Rekonstruktion des Entwurfsverfahrens werden neue Einsichten in das konstruktive Denken der Architekten, die Veränderung des Bauwerkes nach 558, die griechische Mathematik und in das Zusammenspiel mit der Kosmologie mitgeteilt. Wie es scheint, symbolisiert der geometrische Entwurf zudem die Herrschaftsideologie jener Zeit, nach der die gottgegebene weltliche und geistliche Herrschaft des Kaisers und des Patriarchen immer von neuem zur Übereinstimmung gebracht werden musste.
Architecture and Ritual in the Churches of Constantinople by Call Number: NA2543.S6 M359 2014ISBN: 9781107040168Publication Date: 2014-01-13This book examines the interchange of architecture and ritual in the Middle and Late Byzantine churches of Constantinople (ninth to fifteenth centuries). It employs archaeological and archival data, hagiographic and historical sources, liturgical texts and commentaries, and monastic typika and testaments to integrate the architecture of the medieval churches of Constantinople with liturgical and extra-liturgical practices and their continuously evolving social and cultural context. The book argues against the approach that has dominated Byzantine studies: that of functional determinism, the view that architectural form always follows liturgical function. Instead, proceeding chapter by chapter through the spaces of the Byzantine church, it investigates how architecture responded to the exigencies of the rituals, and how church spaces eventually acquired new uses. The church building is described in the context of the culture and people whose needs it was continually adapted to serve. Rather than viewing churches as frozen in time (usually the time when the last brick was laid), this study argues that they were social constructs and so were never finished, but continually evolving.
Byzantine Churches in Constantinople by Call Number: NA5870.A1 .V26 1912ISBN: 9781406712131Publication Date: 2006-05-01Originally published in 1912, this book contains a wealth of information on the history and architecture of the Byzantine Churches in Constantinople, and would make an excellent addition to the bookshelf of anyone with an interest in the subject. Preface; 'This volume is a sequel to the work I published, several years ago, under the title, Byzantine Constantinople: the Walls of the City, and adjoining Historical Sites. In that work the city was viewed, mainly, as the citadel of the Roman Empire in the East, and the bulwark of civilization for more than a thousand years. But the city of Constantine was not only a mighty fortress. It was, moreover, the centre of a great religious community, which elaborated dogmas, fostered forms of piety, and controlled an ecclesiastical administration that have left a profound impression upon the thought and life of mankind. New Rome was a Holy City. It was crowded with churches, hallowed, it was believed, by the remains of the apostles, prophets, saints, and martyrs of the Catholic Church; shrines at which men gathered to worship, from near and far, as before the gates of heaven. These sanctuaries were, furthermore, constructed and beautified after a fashion which marks a distinct and important period in the history of art, and have much to interest the artist and the architect. We have, consequently, reasons enough to justify our study of the churches of Byzantine Constantinople. Of the immense number of the churches which once filled the city but a small remnant survives. Earthquakes, fires, pillage, neglect, not to speak of the facility with which a Byzantine structure could be shorn of its glory, have swept the vast majority off the face of the earth, leaving not a rack behind. In most cases even the sites on which they stood cannot be identified. The places which knew them know them no more. Scarcely a score of the old churches of the city are left to us, all with one exception converted into mosques and sadly altered. The visitor must, therefore, be prepared for disappointment. Age is not always a crown of glory nor does change of ownership and adaptation to different ideas and tastes necessarily conduce to improvement. We are not looking at flowers in their native clime or in full bloom, but at flowers in a herbarium so to speak, or left to wither and decay. As we look upon them we have need of imagination to see in faded colours the graceful forms and brilliant hues which charmed and delighted the eyes of men in other days. In the preparation of this work I have availed myself of the aid afforded by previous students in the same field of research, and I have gratefully acknowledged my debt to them whenever there has been occasion to do so. At the same time this is a fresh study of the subject, and has been made with the hope of confirming what is true, correcting mistakes, and gathering additional information. Attention has been given to both the history and the architecture of these buildings. The materials for the former are, unfortunately, all too scanty. No continuous records of any of these churches exist. A few incidents scattered over wide tracts of time constitute all that can be known. Still, disconnected incidents though they be, they give us glimpses of the characteristic thoughts and feelings of a large mass of our humanity during a long period of history.
The Myrelaion (Bodrum Camii) in Istanbul by Call Number: NA5870.M97 S77 1981Publication Date: 1981Bodrum Mosque is a former Eastern Orthodox church converted into a mosque by the Ottomans.The church was known under the Greek name of Myrelaion.In 1930, an excavation led by David Talbot Rice discovered the round cistern. In 1964-1965, a radical restoration led by the Archaeological Museum of Istanbul replaced almost all the external masonry of the edifice, and was then interrupted. In 1965, two parallel excavations led by art historian Cecil L. Striker and by R. Naumann focused respectively on the substructure and on the imperial palace.
Architecture of the Kariye Camii in Istanbul by Call Number: NA5870.K3 O9 1987ISBN: 0884021653Publication Date: 1988-01-01The Kariye Camii remains one of the most important and best-known monuments of the Byzantine world. Rebuilt and decorated in the early fourteenth century by the statesman and scholar Theodore Metochites, the Kariye Camii played a key role in the development of Late Byzantine art. Ousterhout presents a detailed structural history and architectural analysis of this important building, and shows that the Kariye Camii was equally important in the development of Late Byzantine architecture.
Kalenderhane in Istanbul by Call Number: NA5870.K2 K34 1997ISBN: 3805320264Publication Date: 1997-01-01This is the first of two planned volumes on the archaeological exploration and restoration carried out at Kalenderhane Camii in Istanbul in the years 1966-1978 under the co-sponsorship of Dumbarton Oaks Trustees for Harvard University and the Istanbul Technical University.
Hagia Sophia and the Byzantine Aesthetic Experience by Call Number: NA5870.A9 S34 2014ISBN: 9781472437587Publication Date: 2014-11-14Paramount in the shaping of early Byzantine identity was the construction of the church of Hagia Sophia in Constantinople (532-537 CE). This book examines the edifice from the perspective of aesthetics to define the concept of beauty and the meaning of art in early Byzantium. Byzantine aesthetic thought is re-evaluated against late antique Neoplatonism and the writings of Pseudo-Dionysius that offer fundamental paradigms for the late antique attitude towards art and beauty. These metaphysical concepts of aesthetics are ultimately grounded in experiences of sensation and perception, and reflect the ways in which the world and reality were perceived and grasped, signifying the cultural identity of early Byzantium. There are different types of aesthetic data, those present in the aesthetic object and those found in aesthetic responses to the object. This study looks at the aesthetic data embodied in the sixth-century architectural structure and interior decoration of Hagia Sophia as well as in literary responses (ekphrasis) to the building. The purpose of the Byzantine ekphrasis was to convey by verbal means the same effects that the artefact itself would have caused. A literary analysis of these rhetorical descriptions recaptures the Byzantine perception and expectations, and at the same time reveals the cognitive processes triggered by the Great Church. The central aesthetic feature that emerges from sixth-century ekphraseis of Hagia Sophia is that of light. Light is described as the decisive element in the experience of the sacred space and light is simultaneously associated with the notion of wisdom. It is argued that the concepts of light and wisdom are interwoven programmatic elements that underlie the unique architecture and non-figurative decoration of Hagia Sophia. A similar concern for the phenomenon of light and its epistemological dimension is reflected in other contemporary monuments, testifying to the pervasiveness of these aesthetic values in early Byzantium.Byzantine Monastic Foundation Documents by
Call Number: BX385.B9 B95 2000ISBN: 0884022323Publication Date: 2001-01-01Among the sources for the history of Byzantine monasticism, none are more important than the typika, or foundation documents. Collected and translated in these volumes, the typkia may be used, for the first time, as a comprehensive study of religious life and institutions in the Greek East and as a comparison between Greek and Latin monasticism. Together, the typika illuminate almost every aspect of Byzantine monastic life and its development from the eighth to the fifteenth century.
Mosaics of Hagia Sophia, Istanbul by Call Number: NA3780 .T48 1998ISBN: 0884022641Publication Date: 1998-01-01The architectural jewel of Constantinople is the church of Hagia Sophia (Holy Wisdom), constructed 532–537 CE. Although the edifice built by Justinian remains almost intact, only some of its original mosaics survive. In the first comprehensive study, Natalia Teteriatnikov describes the original mosaic program of the church and its restorations after the earthquake of 558.Drawing from decades of her personal research and scholarship on St. Sophia, the author analyzes the material and decorative components of the Justinianic mosaics that survive. She considers the architectural and theological aesthetics, as well as the social conditions that led to the production of a distinctive, aniconic mosaic program. Lavishly illustrated, the book includes a catalog of the nineteenth-century watercolors created by Gaspare Fossati―the only surviving evidence for reconstructing mosaics that are no longer extant.
Hagia Sophia, 1850-1950 by Call Number: NA5870.A9 N45 2004ISBN: 0226571718Publication Date: 2004-07-14Hagia Sophia, the Church of Holy Wisdom, sits majestically atop the plateau that commands the straits separating Europe and Asia. Located near the acropolis of the ancient city of Byzantium, this unparalleled structure has enjoyed an extensive and colorful history, as it has successively been transformed into a cathedral, mosque, monument, and museum. In Hagia Sophia, 1850-1950, Robert S. Nelson explores its many lives.Built from 532 to 537 as the Cathedral of Constantinople, Hagia Sophia was little studied and seldom recognized as a great monument of world art until the nineteenth century, and Nelson examines the causes and consequences of the building's newly elevated status during that time. He chronicles the grand dome's modern history through a vibrant cast of characters--emperors, sultans, critics, poets, archaeologists, architects, philanthropists, and religious congregations--some of whom spent years studying it, others never visiting the building. But as Nelson shows, they all had a hand in the recreation of Hagia Sophia as a modern architectural icon. By many means and for its own purposes, the West has conceptually transformed Hagia Sophia into the international symbol that it is today.While other books have covered the architectural history of the structure, this is the first study to address its status as a modern monument. With his narrative of the building's rebirth, Nelson captures its importance for the diverse communities that shape and find meaning in Hagia Sophia. His book will resonate with cultural, architectural, and art historians as well as with those seeking to acquaint themselves with the modern life of an inspired and inspiring building.
The Hagia Sophia by Call Number: NA5870.A9 H34 1992ISBN: 0521416779Publication Date: 1992-09-25With its vast scale, immense cost, extraordinary speed of erection, and stunning interior space, the creation of the Hagia Sophia in Istanbul between 532-537 is unparalleled in premodern, Western architecture. As such, the achievement begs answers to three important questions: the nature of the theoretical and material resources available to the early designers to achieve this great building; the behaviour over the centuries of its much modified structure under the action of environmental loadings; the ability of the present-day structure to withstand a major earthquake. In this volume, scholars and professionals from different disciplines exchange ideas and new information pertaining to the historical background, physical environment, design, and the state of the Hagia Sophia building structure over time.
Sanatsal açıdan Kariye Camii by Call Number: NA5870.K3 O9720 2002Publication Date: 2002Bizans sanatının mihenk taşı olan ve Kariye Camii olarak bilinen İstanbuldaki bu yapı, içindeki etkileyici mozaik ve freskolarıyla ünlüdür. Resim ve mozaik süslemeleri kadar yapının kendisi de iyi korunmuştur. Narteks, mezar şapeli ve diğer ekleriyle Kariye Camii, Son Devir Bizans mimarisinin en gelişmiş örneğidir. Resimlerle zenginleştirilmiş bu kitap, kronolojik şekilde yapının tarihini vererek, bir yandan da ziyaretçinin bu muhteşem resim programını sahne sahne gezmesini sağlamaktadır. Yazarın da belirttiği gibi, sanatsal açıdan Kariye Camii Büyük bir kahramanlık şiiri gibi biçimlenmiş çağdaş bir Bizans edebiyat ürünü kadar abartılı ve kapsamlıdır. Bizans sanatı ve Bizans mimarisi konusunda uzman olan Robert Ousterhout, Urbana-Champaignde bulunan İllinois Üniversitesinde Mimarlık Tarihi profesörüdür.
Bir anıt, iki anıtsal kişilik: Theodoros Metokhites'ten Thomas Whittemore'a Kariye = Kariye, from Theodore Metochites to Thomas Whittemore one monument, two munument personalities by Call Number: NA5870.K3 B57 2007ISBN: 9759123347Publication Date: 2007The former church of the monastery of Christ of the Chora, better known today as the Kariye Camisi or Kariye Museum, is one of the most impressive Byzantine monuments to survive in the modern city of İstanbul. Founded probably as early as the sixth century, rebuilt by members of the imperial family in the late eleventh and early twelfth centuries, and splendidly restored by the Byzantine humanist, poet, and prime minister Theodore Metochites between 1316 and 1321, the church of the Chora Monastery is today considered one of the most outstanding examples of Late Byzantine art and architecture to survive. While the building itself was already known as the 'Mosaic Mosque' during the nineteenth century, the fame of the church's rich and complex interior decoration rests by and large on an extensive restoration campaign initiated by the American scholar and philanthropist Thomas Whittemore, founder and director of the Byzantine Institute of America from 1930 to his death in 1950. It was the aim of this exhibition, to explore the history of the "Kariye" through its representation over the centuries, and to pay homage to the two men who were responsible for its restoration and conservation in the fourteenth and twentieth centuries respectively: Theodore Metochites and Thomas Whittemore. The exhibition furthermore aimed to celebrate the work of those who have helped to preserve the architecture of the Kariye and its extraordinary cycle of mosaics and frescoes during the 1940s and 1950s.
Constantine of Rhodes on Constantinople and the Church of the Holy Apostles by Call Number: PA5310.C57 C66 2012ISBN: 9781409431671Publication Date: 2012-12-12Constantine of Rhodes's tenth-century poem is an account of public monuments in Constantinople and of the Church of the Holy Apostles. In the opening section of the work, Constantine describes columns and sculptures within the city, seven of which he calls 'wonders'. In the second part of the poem, he portrays the Church of the Holy Apostles, offering an account of its architecture and internal decoration, notably the mosaics, seven of which are also depicted as 'wonders'. On one level, the poem offers an account of what was visible, a sense of city topography and, in the case of the Apostoleion, a vital description of a now-lost building. But it cannot be read as a straightforward description. Rather, Constantine's work offers insights into Byzantine perceptions of works of art. The monuments Constantine decided to portray and the ways in which he chose to describe them say as much, if not more, about the social and cultural milieu in which he operated as about the actual physical appearance of the monuments themselves. Further, the poem itself, as it survives in one fifteenth-century manuscript, raises questions: is it, in its current form, a single poem or is it made up of a compilation of Constantine's writings? This book supersedes the two previous editions of the poem, both dating to 1896, and provides the first full translation of the text. It consists of a new Greek edition of Constantine's poem, with an introductory essay, prepared by Ioannis Vassis, and a translation and commentary by a group of scholars headed by Liz James. Liz James also contributes an extensive discussion of the two distinct parts of the poem, the city monuments and the Church of the Holy Apostles.
The Register of the Patriarchate of Constantinople by Call Number: BX410 .R44 2013ISBN: 9783700174349Publication Date: 2013-11-20Preserved in two Greek manuscripts of the Austrian National Library, the Register of the Patriarchate of Constantinople contains more than 800 documents, which were written between 1315 and 1402 by or for the Patriarchate and the Synod of Bishops of Constantinople; it is one of the most important sources for the religious, political and social history of the Byzantine Empire in the last centuries of its existence. In 2009, an international congress assembled experts from Austria and abroad in Vienna, who illuminated various aspects of these texts from the perspectives of palaeography, codicology, sociolinguistics, church history, law, social and economic history, and history of diplomacy. The contributions collected in this volume (in German, English and French) open a new view on the medieval Patriarchate of Constantinople and its Register, but also in general on the continued significance of the Byzantine Empire as a spiritual centre in Eastern and South-Eastern Europe and in the entire Mediterranean in an era in which its political power was already shrunk dramatically a few decades before the conquest by the Ottomans in 1453. Thus, the volume is of great interest both for experts from the field of Byzantine as well as Medieval Studies.Early Churches of Constantinople by
Call Number: NA5870.I7 M3 1971ISBN: 0271001089Publication Date: 1990-10-01The first comprehensive attempt to reconstruct from archaeological, liturgical, and historical sources the ceremonial use of Early Byzantine architecture. The archaeological remains of a dozen preiconoclastic churches in Constantinople are examined, and the characteristic patterns of planning revealed are interpreted in the light of the Early Byzantine liturgy. A new approach to Byzantine architecture, which is studied here in the critical first phase of its development.
Khalkhedon'lu (Kadıköy) Azize Euphemia ve Sultanahmet'teki Kilisesi by Call Number: NA5870 .A39 2002ISBN: 9754046468Publication Date: 2002Bu çalışma, Azize Euphemia kültünü ve onun Sultanahmet'te bulunan Martyrion kilisesini, Bizans'ın ve başkentinin kültür tarihi içerisinde bir çerçeveye oturtarak tanıtmayı amaçlamaktadır.
Hagia Sophia by Call Number: NA5870.A9 P46 2017ISBN: 9780271077253Publication Date: 2017-08-22Experiencing the resonant acoustics of the church of Hagia Sophia allowed the Byzantine participants in its liturgical rituals to be filled with the Spirit of God, and even to become his image on earth. Bissera Pentcheva’s vibrant analysis examines how these sung rites combined with the church’s architectural space to make Hagia Sophia a performative place of worship representative of Byzantine religious culture in all its sensory richness.
