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Course: Medieval Europe + Byzantine > Unit 5
Lesson 2: Early Byzantine (including Iconoclasm)- Byzantine Iconoclasm and the Triumph of Orthodoxy
- The origins of Byzantine architecture
- Early Byzantine architecture after Constantine
- Woman with Scroll, An Early Byzantine Sculpture at the Metropolitan Museum of Art
- Byzantine Mosaic of a Personification, Ktisis
- Innovative architecture in the age of Justinian
- SS. Sergius and Bacchus, preserved as the mosque, Küçük Ayasofya
- Hagia Sophia, Istanbul
- Hagia Sophia, Istanbul
- Mosaics and power in Sant’Apollinare Nuovo
- Sant'Apollinare in Classe, Ravenna
- San Vitale, Ravenna
- Justinian Mosaic, San Vitale
- San Vitale (quiz)
- Empress Theodora, rhetoric, and Byzantine primary sources
- Art and architecture of Saint Catherine’s Monastery at Mount Sinai
- Ivory panel with Archangel
- The Emperor Triumphant (Barberini Ivory)
- The Vienna Dioscurides
- Virgin (Theotokos) and Child between Saints Theodore and George
- Virgin (Theotokos) and Child between Saints Theodore and George
- A chalice from the Attarouthi Treasure
- Byzantine architecture during Iconoclasm
- The Byzantine Fieschi Morgan cross reliquary
- Cross-cultural artistic interaction in the Early Byzantine period
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Sant'Apollinare in Classe, Ravenna
Sant'Apollinare in Classe, Ravenna, Italy, c. 533-49 (apse mosaic, 6th century, triumphal arch mosaics, likely c. 7th-12th centuries) Speakers: Dr. Beth Harris & Dr. Steven Zucker. Created by Beth Harris and Steven Zucker.
Want to join the conversation?
- Tough period for me. I hear what you're saying about other-worldly floating, charming flatness, unconcerned with realistic draping, etc., but to me all the two dimensional stuff from this period strikes me as unsophisticated, painfully lacking technique. That mosaic of Alexander crackles and gives off sparks, and that was just in some guy's house, right? Here and entire city-maybe with a nod from the Emperor- pools its resources, and we get guys wearing robes of planks and horses sitting for sheep portraits. Is there any hope for me? Can I get some help?(16 votes)
- That made me laugh. In order to better understand the stylistic changes, its important to keep the introduction of Christianity in mind. The naturalism that you found so compelling in the Alexander mosaic was here rejected. Emphasis turned from a naturalistic representation of the physical world to a symbolic, almost linguistic abstraction of belief.(20 votes)
- There seems to be a hand above the cross. What's that about? Why 99 stars? Is there any significance that some stars are gold and some silver? How do you know the cities are Jerusalem and Bethlehem?(12 votes)
- The hand at2:33is the hand of God reaching toward Jesus and claiming Him as His son.(5 votes)
- How can you tell that the cities1:18are Jerusalem and Bethlehem? They appear identical to me.(11 votes)
- I believe that since those two city's are the 2 Christ seemed to visit most they took a jump. Or when it was built it was told that way and it got passed down.(4 votes)
- At around1:09: How can you tell what evangelist goes to which animal/human?(4 votes)
- The evangelists always have the same symbol. Matthew the Evangelist, the author of the first gospel account is symbolized by a winged man, or angel. Matthew's gospel starts with Joseph's genealogy from Abraham; it represents Jesus' Incarnation, and so Christ's human nature. This signifies that Christians should use their reason for salvation. Mark the Evangelist, the author of the second gospel account is symbolized by a winged lion – a figure of courage and monarchy. Mark has John the Baptist preaching "like a lion roaring" at the beginning of his Gospel. It also represents Jesus' Resurrection (because lions were believed to sleep with open eyes, a comparison with Christ in the tomb), and Christ as king. This signifies that Christians should be courageous on the path of salvation. Luke the Evangelist, the author of the third gospel account (and the Acts of the Apostles) is symbolized by a winged ox or bull – a figure of sacrifice, service and strength. Luke's account begins with the duties of Zacharias in the temple; it represents Jesus' sacrifice in His Passion and Crucifixion, as well as Christ being High priest (this also represents Mary's obedience). The ox signifies that Christians should be prepared to sacrifice themselves in following Christ. John the Evangelist, the author of the fourth gospel account is symbolized by an eagle – a figure of the sky, and believed to be able to look straight into the sun. John starts with an eternal overview of Jesus the Logos and goes on to describe many things with a "higher" level than the other three (synoptic) gospels; it represents Jesus' Ascension, and Christ's divine nature. This represents that Christians should look on eternity without flinching as they journey towards their goal of union with God.
Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Four_Evangelists#Evangelists.27_symbols(9 votes)
- At3:11Why is 'Elijah' written HbELYAS? The b and Y seem to be out of place.
Furthermore, at3:33, Sant' Apollinare is written SANCTUS APOLENARIS, that is, with one L. Is the second instance a mistake, or simply unstandardized spelling (which I find less probable)?(4 votes)- Good questions. This should help for Elijah: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elias
As for Apollinaris, words are not always spelled the way we spell them today - and also there are alternate spellings in different languages.(6 votes)
- Did anyone else note the hand, that points down from the top of the apse towards the cross? Would that be a visual reference to the words of God: "This is my son, whom I love; with whom I am well pleased. Listen to him."?
(Also, is that how you spell apse?appse?aps?apps?!)(3 votes)- From the author:That hand would indeed be a symbol of God. And "apse" is the correct spelling.(4 votes)
- How can we tell that the three sheep at2:13represent Peter, James, and John? There are twelve sheep lower down, which could concieveably represent the twelve apostles, but none of the sheep have any kind of mark to show what they represent.(3 votes)
- Because we read in the Bible, that these three Apostles were present during the Transfiguration.(3 votes)
- At3:11, I understand why Elijah is Elias, but what does mean sign b in HbELYAS? I've never seen it in Latin.(4 votes)
- I think Dr. Harris already answered that question below.(1 vote)
- How can I cite this video?(3 votes)
- What "style" will you be following?
Examples
APA
http://blog.apastyle.org/apastyle/2011/10/how-to-create-a-reference-for-a-youtube-video.html
MLA
https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/747/18/
Harvard
http://asklib.hcl.harvard.edu/a.php?qid=128382
Example from SmartHistory / Khan Acadmey
http://smarthistory.khanacademy.org/how-to-cite-smarthistory.html(2 votes)
- What is the meaning of the letter Z on Justinian's robe?(3 votes)
Video transcript
[MUSIC PLAYING] SPEAKER 1: We're in the church
of Sant'Apollinare in Classe just outside of Ravenna. This was once the port
for the Roman Empire in the early first century. SPEAKER 2: Right. There had once
been a large lagoon in between the two towns. That's long gone. This was actually the site
of an ancient Roman cemetery. And there is every possibility
that the first bishop of Ravenna, Saint
Apollinaris, was actually buried here on this site. SPEAKER 1: And we
see Saint Apollinaris right here in the
center of the apse. But before we get
to that, let's talk about the church for a second. We're in a basilica. And like so many
churches in Ravenna, it's been through many phases. And just like
Sant'Apollinare in Nuovo, there would have been
mosaics all along the nave, but those are gone. SPEAKER 2: What we do have is
an extraordinary apse mosaic. It's huge. SPEAKER 1: Let's start with
the archway around the apse. SPEAKER 2: That's known
as the triumphal arch. SPEAKER 1: And in
the top center, we see a bearded image
of God holding a book, and on either side of him
the symbols of the four Evangelists. SPEAKER 2: Right. John is an eagle. Matthew is the man. Mark is the lion. And Luke is the ox. SPEAKER 1: And they're
in a sky filled with blue and red clouds. Below them, we see on the
left the city of Jerusalem, on the right Bethlehem. And from those two very
symbolically represented cities, we see lambs emerging. SPEAKER 2: Walking
up a mountain, up towards the clouds,
up towards Heaven. SPEAKER 1: So clearly, a
purely symbolic representation, and that continues in
the apse mosaic itself. SPEAKER 2: Largest and most
central is a gold cross. In the center of
the cross you can see a small bust
of Jesus Christ. Surrounding it is a blue
field with 99 gold stars. SPEAKER 1: On either edge of
the short arm of the cross we see the Greek
letters alpha and omega, the idea that Christ
is the beginning and the end, that
Christ is all things. So what we have symbolically
represented here is the story we call the
Transfiguration, the moment when Christ revealed his
divine nature to three of his apostles,
Peter, James, and John. And they're shown here
as sheep in a field. Christ is symbolically
represented as the cross. SPEAKER 2: On either side,
we do see two human figures, half-length representations. One is Moses, and one is Elijah. SPEAKER 1: And in the story
of the Transfiguration, when Christ revealed
his divine nature and was filled with white
light, Moses and Elijah appeared with him. And God the Father
spoke and said, "This is my son whom I love,
with whom I am well pleased. Listen to him." And so this is the moment
of divine revelation, this appearance of
Christ the man as God. SPEAKER 2: It's
so easy to imagine a sixth-century
worshipper sitting here, understanding that
this is a sort of extraordinary
opportunity to have these sacred truths revealed
to them as they sit before it. SPEAKER 1: The figures of Moses
and Elijah in a golden sky in the realm of the eternal,
below Sant'Apollinare in a more earthly realm, but one
represented very schematically and decoratively. SPEAKER 2: And of course
the sheep are wonderful, especially down at the bottom. There are 12 of them,
and it's clearly the reference to the apostles. SPEAKER 1: And Sant'Apollinare
himself stands frontal. We can see his name written
on either side of him, just in case we're going
to forget or be confused. SPEAKER 2: That's right. We can't do that. SPEAKER 1: And he's
got his arms raised in prayer, which is
actually a position we often see in early Christian imagery. SPEAKER 2: So in these
churches in Ravenna, we see here an apse. In another church, the
apse might be missing. But we have the mosaics
on the walls of the nave, and we can begin to fit together
what these churches would have looked like when they were new
in the fifth and sixth century. [MUSIC PLAYING]