Early Christian Architecture

EARLY CHRISTIAN
ARCHITECTURE
4th CENTURY A.D.
A. GEOGRAPHICAL INFLUENCE
• Christianity had its birth in Judea, Eastern province of the
Roman Empire.
• Early Christian Architecture was influenced by the existing
Roman Art.
B. GEOLOGICAL INFLUENCE
• The ruins of the Roman buildings provided quarry where
materials were obtained. This influence of the style for
construction, decoration for columns and other architectural
features as well as fine sculpture and mosaic from other
buildings which were turn into basilican churches of the new
faith.
C. CLIMATIC INFLUENCE
• The climatic condition of Roman provinces where Christianity
was established naturally modified the styles.
• The fiercer the sun and hotter climate necessitated small
windows and other Eastern features.
D. RELIGIOUS INFLUENCE
• Christianity spread out rapidly and was an important factor in
the development of early Christian architecture and inspired
the building of some of the greatest architectural monuments.
• Constantine and Licinius issued their celebrated edict of Milan
giving Christianity equal rights with other religions and
Constantine made it the official religion.
E. SOCIAL AND POLITICAL
INFLUENCE
• Constantine was the prime character but was not proclaimed
Emperor, he removed his empire from Rome to Byzantium and
developed a new style of Architecture.
F. HISTORICAL INFLUENCE
• The final phase of Roman Architecture from 4th to 6th Century,
primarily in church building.
ARCHITECTURAL CHARACTER
• Early Christian Architecture is basically Roman in character but
executed it through:
1. SIMPLICITY IN DESIGN
2. COARSENESS IN EXECUTION
IMPORTANT FEATURES OF
EARLY CHRISTIAN ARCHITECTURE
1. They contributed in the development of “ribbed vaulting and
arcades and timber trussed roof”.
2. They used bell tower or “campanile” in their exterior.
3. They had either closely spaced columns carrying the entablature
(trabeated) or more widely spaced columns carrying semi-circular
arches known as “archivolt”
4. They were usually with 3-5 aisles covered by a simple trussed roof.
Uses long rows of “off-repeated” columns from entry to sanctuary
for a long Church appearance.
5. An “arch of triumph” (transaction thru death to life eternal) gave
entrance to sanctuary with the high altar at the corner.
EARLY CHRISTIAN ARCHITECTURE
STRUCTURES
BASILICAN CHURCHES
• In the construction of basilican churches, there is a rule that it
should be built right over the burial place of the saint to whom
the church was dedicated.
• Roman basilicas as models .
• Unlike Greek and Roman temples which sheltered gods, the
purpose of the Christian church was to shelter worshippers
• Came in a complex, with cathedral, belfry or campanile, and
baptistery
Parts of An
Early Christian Basilica
1. Propylaeum
2. Atrium
3. Narthex
4. Nave
5. Side Aisle
6. Crossing
7. Transept
8. Apse
Parts of An
1. Propylaeum (Propylaea)- the entrance building of a sacred
precinct, whether church or imperial palace.
2. Atrium - the forecourt of a church; as a rule enveloped by
four colonnaded porticoes.
3. Narthex - the entrance hall or porch proceding the nave of a
church.
4. Nave - the great central space in a church. In longitudinal
churches, it extends from the entrance to the apse (or only to
the crossing if the church has one) and is usually flanked by
side aisles.
Parts of An
5. Side Aisle - one of the corridors running parallel to the nave of a
church and separated from it by an arcade or colonnade.
6. Crossing - the area in a church where the transept and the nave
intersect.
7. Transept - In a cruciform church, the whole arm set at right angles
to the nave. Note that the transept appears infrequently in Early
Christian churches.
8. Apse - a recess, sometimes rectangular but usually semicircular, in
the wall at the end of a Roman basilica or Christian church. In the
Early Christian basilica, the apses contained the "cathedra" or
throne of the bishop and the altar.
Basilica Papale di San Paolo fuori le Mura
Basilica Papale di San Paolo fuori le Mura
• The basilica was founded by

the Roman Emperor
Constantine I over the burial
place of Saint Paul, where it
was said that, after the
Apostle's execution, his
followers erected a memorial,
called a cella memoriae.
Santa Maria Maggiore
• The largest Catholic Marian
church in Rome, Italy.
• The design of the basilica was a
typical one during this time in
Rome: "a tall and wide nave; an
aisle on either side; and a
semicircular apse at the end of
the nave.“
• The key aspect that made Santa
Maria Maggiore such a
significant cornerstone in church
building during the early 5th
century were the beautiful
mosaics found on the triumphal
arch and nave.
San Clemente al Laterano
• Archaeologically speaking, the structure is a
three-tiered complex of buildings:
(1) the present basilica built just before the year
1100 during the height of the Middle Ages;
(2) beneath the present basilica is a 4th-century
basilica that had been converted out of the
home of a Roman nobleman, part of which
had in the 1st century briefly served as an
early church, and the basement of which
had in the 2nd century briefly served as a
mithraeum;
(3) the home of the Roman nobleman had been
built on the foundations of republican era
villa and warehouse that had been
destroyed in the Great Fire of AD 64.
Santa Sabina
• Santa Sabina is the oldest
extant Roman basilica in
Rome that preserves its
original colonnaded
rectangular plan and
architectural style. Its
decorations have been
restored to their original
restrained design.
BAPTISTERIES
• Used only for sacrament of baptism, on festivals of Easter,
Pentecost and Epiphany
• Large separate building from church, sometimes adjoined
atrium
Lateran Baptistery
• This baptistery was founded
by Pope Sixtus III in 440,
perhaps on an earlier
structure, for a legend grew
up that Constantine the
Great had been baptized
there and enriched the
structure.
Lateran Baptistery
• This baptistry was for many
generations the only
baptistery in Rome, and its
octagonal structure,
centered upon the large
octagonal basin for full
immersions, provided a
model for others throughout
Italy, and even an iconic
motif of illuminated
manuscripts, "The fountain of
Life".
TOMBS or CATACOMBS
• Christians objected to cremation, insisted on burial on consecrated
ground
• Land for burials had become scarce and expensive
• Monumental tombs became expressions of faith in immortality
• Cemeteries or catacombs were excavated below ground
• Several stories extending downwards
• Usually domed and enriched with lavish mosaic decorations
• Walls and ceilings were lavishly decorated with paintings mixing
pagan symbolism with scenes from the bible
Mausoleum of Galla Placidia
• is a cruciform chapel or
oratory that originally
adjoined the narthex of the
Church of the Holy Cross
(Santa Croce) in Ravenna.
• It was added to the World
Heritage List together with
seven other structures in
Ravenna in 1996.
Terminologies
• Ambulatory – the covered walk of an atrium or cloister.
• Cantharus – a basin for a ritual cleansing with water in the
atrium of an Early Christian basilica
• Font – a basin, usually of stone, holding the water used in the
baptism.
• Esonarthex – an inner narthex when two are present.
• Exonarthex –a covered walk or outer narthex situated before
an inner narthex.
Terminologies
• Ambo – either of two raised stands from which the Gospels or
Epistles were read or chanted.
• Cancelli –a low screen separating the clergy and sometimes
the choir from the congregation.
• Tribune – the bishop’s throne, occupying a recess or apse
• Bema – a transverse open space separating the nave and the
apse, developing into the transept of later cruciform churches
• Sanctuary – a sacred holy place, as that part of a church in
which the principal altar is placed.
Terminologies
• Altar – the table in a Christian church. Also called, communion
table.
• Baldachin – an ornamental canopy of stone or marble
permanently placed over the altar in a church.
• Exedra – a large apsidal extension of the interior volume of a
church.
• Sacristy – a room in a church where the sacred vessels and
vestments are kept.

Early Christian Architecture

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EARLY CHRISTIAN

• The basilica was founded by

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