Early Byzantine Architecture 6th century CE

Early Byzantine art is usually associated with the age of Justinian, the powerful monarch who reigned from 527-565) and whose imperial capital was Constantinople. During his reign the power shifted from Italy to the Eastern Empire and Byzantine art emerges as a new and distinctive style. Byzantine art is usually symbolic more than representational (or "realistic"). When the artists depict figures, they are often flat silhouettes. Spatial relationships are unimportant and "real" settings disappear. The icon, a depiction of sacred persons, develops in this period, and the stylized formula of depicting them remains constant for many centuries.

	Hagia Sophia Constantinople (Istanbul, Turkey), 532-37
	The original church, destroyed by fire in 532, was rebuilt on a grand scale in a mere five years during Justinian's reign. There was no precedent for such an enormous and ambitious building. The huge dome toppled during an earthquake within 21 years of the church's dedication; an even higher one replaced it! All kinds of miracles were recorded at its building, including angels guarding the building and settling disputes among the builders, and a visitation by the Virgin Mary. The four minarets were constructed after the Ottoman conquest of 1453 when Hagia Sophia became an Islamic mosque. Today it is a museum.
	The plan is unique. A huge central dome rests on piers; semi-domes are on each side. It is about 270 feet long and 240 feet wide. Unlike the basilica, a longitudinal plan, this plan combines both a central and longitudinal plan--central because of the dominant dome and longitudinal because of the longitudinal axis created by the semi-domes. Over the years of Christian church building, the longitudinal plan would become more popular.
	The interior is lit by forty windows at the base of dome. The inside is mysterious and spatially ambiguous because of the interior colonnades and pierced walls. The mysterious space is especially evident from the aisles where the congregation sat. (The central space was reserved for the clergy.)
	The great dome is 108 feet in diameter and its top rises about 180 feet above the floor. The windows at the base of the dome give the illusion that it is resting on the light. The lighting effects are also accentuated by the gold mosaic which covers the dome -- four acres in all! Because of its size and distance from the viewer, the dome was less suited for mosaic paintings. The light and shimmering gold also add to its mysterious effects.