Early Byzantine Architectural Sculpture

Acheiropoietos basilica comprises a phenomenally preserved, typical example of the threeaisled timber-roofed Hellenistic-type basilica with narthex and galleries, thus fitting more than any of the Thessalonican monuments to the standardized Early Byzantine ecclesiastical architecture.
Due to the overall symmetry of its architectural form and the presumable homogeneity of its original sculptural decoration, Acheiropoietos is usually considered as the last maintained architectural composition of the city that still echoes the aesthetics of the Late Antiquity.
However, based on a recent architectural and sculptural analysis of the monument, it occurs that Acheiropoietos was originally erected as a m Roman-type basilica without galleries during the last decade of the fifth  or the first decade of the sixth century (ca. 500). Even though the ground-plan of the church remained unaltered through the ages, its upper-structure was later remodeled. The galleries, a not surviving clerestory and extended annexes were added during the first —among many— structural restoration of the building that took place during the seventh century, as a result of the 620-630 series of earthquakes that devastated large part of the city along with its main urban infrastructure and ecclesiastical monuments.
Based on this new evidence, the present paper presents the various architectural sculptures of the basilica as: (a) a variety of bases of both the classical and the simplified variations of the attic-ionic type, (b) various column shafts, (c) the largest maintained group of twenty nine composite capitals with double fined-toothed acanthus leaves at the tribelon, the nave and the outer-narthex colonnade that beyond their superficial uniformity are divided in four subgroups, (d) various subtypes of the Impost-ionic capitals at the south gallery colonnade, (e) the twenty nine decorated impost-blocks that crown the composite capitals of the nave colonnades, (f) the consoles that support the traverse arches of the narthex, as well as (g) a variety of different type cornices adorning the masonry of the segmental apse and the nave arcades.
At the same time the several types of Constantinopolitan mason marks that connect the primary architectural sculptures of the main nave with specific imperial sculptural workshops of the sixth century are discussed.
Based on this recent study, the architectural sculptures of the gallery level, that until recently were encountered as parts of the original building, have been re-dated and attributed to its second phase. At the same time, several, unobserved until now, characteristics of those at the ground level—apparently belonging to the first phase sculptural decoration of the basilica— showcase that they were not tailor-made for the late fifth-early sixth century basilica; on the contrary they consist of (a) ready-made architectural sculptures, made with proconesian marble in Constantinopolitan workshops, (b) lower-quality sculptures of local workshops made with white coarse-grained marble form the Thassian quarries at Alyki, and (c) secondary, mostly undecorated, architectural members as imposts and thresholds that were cut on the building site from marble sarcophagi, looted from the abandoned Late Roman cemeteries of the city.

This chapter aims to present openwork panels, a sizeable group of high-quality architectural sculpture obtained in the course of excavations and surveys at Olympos. Thus, a total of 58 panel fragments were catalogued under 37 headings. The basic patterns attested on openwork panels from Olympos include intersecting circles, fish scales and rhombi, all widely encountered in the architectural decoration of the Early Christian and Byzantine periods. The compositions on the panels are variations of these motifs with crosses and floral motifs. Decorative elements are enriched with mouldings and grooves. The borders on the panel frames are decorated with vegetal motifs including ears of wheat, scrolling foliates, ivy and palmettes. Mouldings and borders are decorated in engraving technique, and these elements are more superficial or not existing at all on the reverses.

A recent project with architecture students provided rather surprising results in relation to their perception of Byzantine architecture. The students’ descriptions for Hagia Sophia were strikingly similar to those of the sixth century Byzantine spectators such as Procopius and Paul the Silentiary, with whom they were not familiar. Another 12th century description confirmed a similar appreciation of the building centuries later. Its constructive features, such as the size of the dome, and how it was supported, were found to be mind-boggling. Other elements such as the cornices and column capitals seemed as if they had no load bearing roles, because of their decorative features. The usage of light contributed to these perceptions. Such oddities in design, that contradict the nature of the material, were also encountered in later centuries such as the knotted column, popular in the 11th and 12th centuries.
Another issue is the three-dimensional character of the Byzantine building, which provided various viewpoints, but never a clear perception of the whole interior. The dictation of liturgy describing where each group stand, defined their limited visual access, adding more mystery to their perception. Such inscrutability is very clearly visible in Byzantine texts.
This paper aims to examine the aesthetic features of Byzantine interiors through direct references to material culture and contemporary texts, trying to understand how a building was designed to be perceived, and how these intended perceptions acquired by decorative schemes are still immutable despite what has been made available by modern technology.

Η Αχειροποίητος αποτελεί στη σημερινή της μορφή τυπικό παράδειγμα τρίκλιτης ξυλόστεγης βασιλικής, του καλούμενου ελληνιστικού τύπου, με νάρθηκα και υπερώα, αντικατοπτρίζοντας περισσότερο από οιοδήποτε σωζόμενο μνημείο της Θεσσαλονίκης την πιο χαρακτηριστική έκφανση της πρωτοβυζαντινής εκκλησιαστικής αρχιτεκτονικής. Λόγω δε της συμμετρικής εν τω συνόλω ανάπτυξης της αρχιτεκτονικής μορφής της και της μορφολογικής ομοιογένειας του αρχικού γλυπτού διακόσμου της, η Αχειροποίητος μπορεί να θεωρηθεί ως η αρτιότερα διατηρούμενη αρχιτεκτονική σύνθεση της ύστερης αρχαιότητας στη Θεσσαλονίκη, που συνεχίζει να απηχεί τις αισθητικές αξίες του αρχαίου κόσμου.Ωστόσο, ο ναός κατά τη διάρκεια της μακρόχρονης —πλέον των δεκαπέντε αιώνων— ιστορίας του, αν και φαινομενικά παρέμεινε τυπολογικά αναλλοίωτος, δέχτηκε πολυάριθμες επισκευαστικές επεμβάσεις για την αποκατάσταση δομικών προβλημάτων που οφείλονταν σε επάλληλες καταπονήσεις του φορέα από την περιοδικά έντονη σεισμική δραστηριότητα της Θεσσαλονίκης και της περιοχής της. Σε κάθε περίπτωση τα δομικά προβλήματα αντιμετωπίζονταν με εκτενή προγράμματα αποκατάστασης, που παρά το γεγονός ότι αποκαθιστούσαν τον αρχιτεκτονικό τύπο του πρωτοτύπου, διαφοροποιούνταν ως προς τα επί μέρους μορφολογικά και κατασκευαστικά χαρακτηριστικά, ακολουθώντας διαφορετικά αρχιτεκτονικά πρότυπα, και εφαρμόζοντας αρχιτεκτονικές μορφές με τρόπους και υλικά δόμησης χαρακτηριστικά της —βυζαντινής, οθωμανικής ή ακόμη και της νεώτερης— περιόδου, κατά τις οποίες υλοποιήθηκαν.Βάσει ποικίλων ενδείξεων που ανιχνεύονται στις τοιχοποιίες του ναού και οφείλονται σε διαφορετικές δομικές ή επισκευαστικές φάσεις, διαπιστώνεται ότι πέρα από τη φάση ίδρυσης της πρωτοβυζαντινής βασιλικής, που διατηρήθηκε κατά το πλείστον στο επίπεδο του ισογείου, το κτήριο διατηρεί στην παρούσα κατάσταση δομικά κατάλοιπα πέντε εκτενών αποκαταστάσεων, σε συνδυασμό με μικρότερες επισκευαστικές επεμβάσεις τοπικού χαρακτήρα.H παρούσα εργασία εξετάζει την αρχιτεκτονική και τις ποικίλες δομικές φάσεις του ναού, σε συνδυασμό με την τυπολογική και μορφολογική ανάλυση του γλυπτού του διακόσμου. Παράλληλα, με τη βοήθεια γραπτών και εικαστικών μαρτυριών επιχειρείται η σκιαγράφηση της ιστορίας της Αχειροποιήτου από την ίδρυσή της έως τις αρχές του 20ου αιώνα, με σκοπό να αναδειχθεί ο ρόλος της βασιλικής στην εκάστοτε ιστορική περίοδο και να υπογραμμιστεί η σημασία του μνημείου για τη θρησκευτική και κοινωνική ζωή της πόλης τόσο κατά τη βυζαντινή όσο και κατά την οθωμανική περίοδο.

In its present state, Acheiropoietos basilica comprises a phenomenally preserved, typical example of the three-aisled timber-roofed basilica, of the so called Hellenistic type, with narthex and galleries, thus fitting more than any of the monuments maintained in Thessaloniki to the standardized Early Byzantine ecclesiastical architecture. Due to the overall symmetry of its architectural form and the presumable homogeneity of its original sculptural decoration, Acheiropoietos is usually considered as the last maintained architectural composition of the city that still echoes the aesthetics of the Late Antiquity. However, despite the presumable typological inalterability of the monument throughout the fifteen centuries upon its foundation, the building has suffered several devastations, caused mainly by the intense seismic activity of Thessaloniki and its region. Every time the more or less severe damage hazards caused by the historical earthquakes of Thessaloniki were rehabilitated in the framework of a restoration project, characterized by the architectural trends, the building methods and materials of the corresponding—Byzantine, Ottoman or even Modern—period.Based on evidence concerning the structural phases of the basilica, it seems that apart from the Early Byzantine structure, preserved mainly in the ground floor level of the basilica, the building maintains in its present state traces of five major reconstructions along with minor repairs.The present PhD dissertation examines thoroughly the architecture and the multiple structural phases of the basilica along with a typological and morphological analysis of its sculptural decoration. At the same time, by means of written and visual sources the same study attempts to outline the history of Acheiropoietos basilica from its erection until the dawn of the twentieth century, in order to highlight the role that the basilica played in different historical periods, as well as to showcase its significance for both the religious and sociopolitical life of the Thessaloniki during the Byzantine and the Ottoman period.

Macroscopic examination is used as a guide for selecting candidates for isotopic testing in a search for Thasian marble artifacts in the north Adriatic region. Five Roman and Early Byzantine artifacts could be sampled in Ravenna, Aquileia, and Milan: three sarcophagi, a pulpit, and a column shaft. Grain size was measured in some cases. Four of the five candidates clearly proved to be marble from Thasos, and the other seemed more likely to be Thasian than Proconnesian.

Spazi di discussione, percorsi di ricerca Atti dell'VIII Congresso dell'Associazione Italiana di Studi Bizantini (Ravenna, 22-25 settembre 2015) a cura di SALVATORE COSENTINO, MARGHERITA ELENA POMERO e GIORGIO VESPIGNANI TOMO SECONDO FONDAZIONE CENTRO ITALIANO DI STUDI SULL'ALTO MEDIOEVO SPOLETO 2019

For the first time capitals of the Episcopal
Basilica of Philippopolis,
samples of the and impost the Ionic
impost type – Byzantine inventions
designed to carry arcades – are being
published. Some of the specimens
testify to a large-scale reconstruction
of the roof structure of the basilica.
The analysis of the shape and decoration
places the capitals in the period
between the second half of the 5th
century and the second half of the
6th century. The limits become even
narrow of the already proposed
stages of laying floor mosaics, probably
preceded by other construction
activities, are being taken into consideration.
Most likely, the capitals
and the reconstruction of the church
accordingly date from the reign of
Justinian I.
The parallels from Constantinople,
Chersonesos, Greece, Odessos, etc.
suggest that most on the capitals of
the Episcopal Basilica of Philippopolis
originated from the imperial
quarries and workshops on the island
of Proconnesоs. Jugging by some
marked but not sufficiently shaped
details of the relief decoration as
well as by specific decorative
schemes of pulvinae, at least the final
phase had to be executed on site.
The unfinished Ionic capital made of
syenite, the material extracted close
to Philippopolis during the Roman
period is evidence of continuing, albeit
limited, stonemasonry activity.

Un monumento straordinario e complesso come la Santa Sofia di Istanbul offre  innumerevoli possibilità di lettura e di analisi lungo lo stratificato scorrere della sua plurisecolare esistenza. La chiave interpretativa scelta dal progetto di ricerca, avviato nel 1999, è quella della decorazione scultorea, osservata da diverse angolazioni e considerata in primo luogo nel contesto della fabbrica giustinianea, in particolare plutei, transenne e soffitti marmorei che di essa costituiscono una vera e propria ossatura. Agli arredi in opera è stato poi indispensabile, in una seconda fase, aggiungere quelle sculture che con la storia dell’edificio sono strettamente connesse ma che giacciono oggi nel giardino circostante, ospiti del moderno Ayasofya Müzesi, nato nel 1935. Il progetto si è così esteso a questa ricca raccolta lapidaria che costituisce, per la varietà e l’importanza dei pezzi, un assai significativo punto di riferimento per lo studio della scultura bizantina nel contesto dell’antica Costantinopoli. A corollario di questa linea-guida, coordinata dalle università romane della Sapienza e di Tor Vergata, si sono via via maturate le ricerche parallele su altri aspetti della decorazione della Grande Chiesa connessi sia con il settore della scultura, come i rivestimenti marmorei in opus sectile o i manufatti bronzei, dalle porte agli arredi minori sia, eccezionalmente, con quello della pittura. Si tratta in questo caso di tre serie di tre clipei dipinti sui soffitti della galleria occidentale nella sua parte meridionale. Pur se la superficie appare assai deperita, si possono facilmente individuare, all'interno dei clipei, le lettere dorate di monogrammi cruciformi che dovevano essere connessi tra loro. Dall'aspetto e dalla forma dei monogrammi si può ipotizzare una cronologia all'VIII-IX secolo.

Traendo spunto dai due frammenti di lastra reimpiegati nel pavimento della chiesa di Sant’Irene a Costantinopoli, sui quali è scolpita una elaborata composizione geometrica siglata dal monogramma di Costantino V Copronimo (741-775), il mio intervento intende proporre nuove riflessioni sulle origini e sulla diffusione di tale schema decorativo, caratterizzato da una losanga con cerchi annodati sui lati, che ha goduto di notevole fortuna nella scultura del periodo medio bizantino. La lastra della Santa Irene potrebbe esemplificare una prima fase del processo di trasformazione di un modello largamente diffuso in età protobizantina, testimoniando nel contempo, come sembrerebbe emergere da una serie di confronti, il criterio di selezione di una specifica variante di esso. Lo studio della lastra s’inquadra nell’ambito di una più ampia ricerca sulla produzione scultorea bizantina in epoca postgiustinianea, un campo d’indagine ancora in larga parte inesplorato.

The paper is divided in two parts, the first one being simply a playful hommage to Claudia Barsanti through a learned and pedantic speculation about a fictitious type of byzantine marble capitals. The second part, related to the previous one by some bibliographic threads, throws light on the provenance of five roman architectural marbles gifted by John Pierpont Morgan to the Metropolitan Museum at the beginning of the 20th century; in that occasion Italian authorities complained an illegal export of items from the Trajan Forum but, thanks to written and photographic documents kept in the Archivio Centrale dello Stato at Rome, is possible to ascertain that the purchase by Pierpont Morgan was regularly made, while the marbles don’t belong to the Trajan Forum, as they show close affinities with the Aula Regia decorative sculpture of Domitian age.

The Golden Gate, integrated into the southern stretch of the Theodosian Walls, served as the ceremonial entrance to Constantinople. Numerous crosses and staurograms are carved in relief on marble blocks dating from its construction between 388 and 413. These symbols deserve serious consideration, as the Golden Gate is the oldest extant triumphal arch that utilizes Christian imagery. The limited attention given to its visual program has thus far relied upon the reconstruction of both the Latin inscriptions over the central portal and the figural imagery.

    I suggest that an examination of the internal relationship of these symbols—the pairing of cross and staurogram—is more revealing than a typological approach. Existing plans and reconstructions do not provide a complete record of their placement, form, and number. I offer my own survey, which reveals a considered arrangement. Staurograms are located upon the outer springers of the north and south arches of the Golden Gate; these are mirrored by crosses on the inner springers. This pairing is repeated on the southwest and northwest corners of the north and south pylons where a cross and staurogram flank the approach to the triple arch. Thus, by processing through the Golden Gate, one passes through progressive staurogram-cross pairs.

    I attempt to accommodate these symbols’ variety and fluidity rather than pursue absolute identifications that define crosses as either the imperial, victorious cross or the holy cross on Golgotha. The use of cross and staurogram in other contexts suggests that their arrangement on the Golden Gate conflates word and image. I suggest the relationship between these symbols helps form the Golden Gate’s complex visual program.