Chapter 4: Late Antiquity - Early Christianity and Byzantine

 Chapter 4: Late Antiquity - Early Christianity and Byzantine

From the time of 29 C.E. the era of Pre-Constantine took place, where Christians surfaced after the crucifixion of Jesus Christ and were persecuted under Diocletian. He didn't accept their  monotheistic belief system and though they could be pardoned, were usually punished strictly if caught worshiping. After this, Constantine ruled from 312-337 C.E.. After 337, his successors rule and we eventually get to the rule of Byzantine or the Byzantine Empire in 527.

Christians’ earliest worship places were taking place in this time period in the house churches. To keep their worship secret, so as to not be persecuted and thrown in jail or worse, they worshiped in private. These houses devoted to Christian worship were usually donated by wealthy Chrstians and converted into synagogues. These became known as tituli and there were estimated 25 of these in Rome while Constantine ruled and where turned into actual churches when Christianity was later legalized. The private houses with central courtyards and surrounded on three sides by numerous rooms leading to one main gathering space were domus ecclesiae and could fit nearly 50 people. 

A synagogue in this historic time period was usually houses that were turned into churches and had a small tub that they poured water into to perform baptisms. The synagogues contained many frescos of biblical stories and panels on the walls depicting figures of the Bible. Christians during the persecution time were small communities and often attracted impoverished classes of society.

As the number of Christians grew, they started creating specific cemeteries for the burial of Christians. They used the vast subterranean networks of galleries, passageways, and chambers on private property outside the city’s walls for these burials. They called these places catacombs and can be found in Rome and surrounding areas. While they were used as cemeteries, recovery of these catacombs also contained some of the earliest Christian artwork, dating back to the third and fourth centuries. The catacombs consisted of a loculi, small openings in the wall for the dead bodies, and the cubicula, a small room for mortuary chapels. 

Inside the catacombs

In 312 when Constantine defeated Maxentius in Rome and took his place as Emperor, Christianity became legalized. Constantine believed that Yahweh was the source of his power and not a threat, so he passed the Edict of Milan, bringing an end to the persecution of the Christians. This brought change to the lives of Christians dramatically, as the church exerted an almost complete monopoly on the individuals daily lives. They were able to tell the months, days and times of the year with celebrations of saints’ feasts and daily religious prayers.

Everything Christians did after this was tied to the clergy and the church. What they ate, when they ate, how they acted, and prayed was described for them by the church. Their diet was similar to common early Roman’s diets of grains and breads, meats and vegetables. The difference was that Christians ate more fish than non-Christians, usually because they were a symbol of their faith or the fact that early Christians were often poor.  

After the Reformation and Counter-Reformation many things changed for Christians. The allowance of divorce, different dietary rules, and use of vernacular in services and literature influenced their daily lives. Even today the advancement of society and tolerance for things that were once looked down on influences the lives of present-day Christians. This influence allows for leniency in the church and less disciplined standards for Christians and their daily lives.  

While Constantine allowed for Christianity to be legalized, he maintained and safeguarded Ancient Roman religion, mindful to avoid confrontation between the two ideologies. However, Constantine was considered a major patron to Christian churches, such as Old Saint Peters, one of his grandest churches. Inspired by Roman Basilicas, this church housed the relics of Saint Peter. They found relics such as clothing, objects they used, and even body parts.

After Constantine died in 337 C.E., the empire crumbled and multiple different emperors came into power, one establishing Christianity as a state religion, another banning pagan worship, and another handing the crumbling empire from one city to the next. 

“The Fall of Rome” Thomas Cole

Finally the Byzantine Empire rose and became the longest political entity in Europe from 324 A.D. until 1453. It centered around Roman statecraft, Greek culture and Christian belief. Hagia Sophia was one of the greatest examples of Byzantine Eastern European style. Two geometrician architects, Anthemius and Isidore, were to create a church this glorious in Constantinople. Hagia Sophia was built in 532-537 and was a mix between the classically rational and the mysterious. Interiorly, this church was decorated with different displays of art. The well-lighted space was plain on the exterior, yet had extremely lavish ornamentation on the interior.

All decorative pieces in this age were lavish in design and defined the purpose of the building. The lighting was important and the materials were carefully planned out. Both the architects who were hired and the designers of the space took care in every detail. One of these common designs was Mosaics. Mosaics were advertisements and informed people of new faith. They carried the message of Christ and were displayed on the walls of dozens of new churches. This is the tradition of the wall painting and the tiles. Mosaic tiles shimmered, bright with characteristic and portrayed religious figures in the Bible.

Favorite current Applications:

The Lux Aeterna - The Holy Cross Chapel by LAAV Architects 

The Arch of Constantine - Augustan Rome

Built in 312-315 to commemorate the 10 year rule of 

Constantine and his victory over Maxentius.

Sant’Apollinare Nuovo - Ravenna, Italy

One Step Further: 

I was very interested in the architects, Isidore of Miletus and Anthemius of Tralles, that worked on the Hagia Sophia. I thought it was very interesting that they were commissioned to do this church and to have created it so gloriously that to this day it is known as such a pristine building and piece of architecture. They must have been very well-known for having been commissioned by an emperor. I looked into both architects to see what other architecture they played a part in. While I couldn't find a whole lot about their other work, since they were both also very intelligent and worked in mathematics and physics, it is said that Anthemius also repaired the flood defenses of Daras. Overall they are just very creative and very artistic architects and famous for their work in this historical time period. 

Extra Links:

Hagia Sophia video-

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XfpusWEd2jE

Sant’ Apollinare Nuovo website

https://smarthistory.org/early-byzantine-architecture-after-constantine/