Earth and Ocean: The Terrestrial World in Early Byzantine Art (Monographs on the Fine Arts)

One of the most distinctive characteristics of Byzantine art of the later fifth and the sixth centuries AU. is its fondness for imagery drawn from natural history. Wherever the visitor looks in churches of this period, whether it be to the floors, the walls, the furnishing, or the ceilings and the vaults, there may be representations of birds, beasts, sea creatures, and plants. These motifs from nature raise complex questions of meaning and significance, but often the works of art do not in themselves provide clear answers to these questions, so that the modern viewer is unsure how to interpret them. The aim of this book is to draw on the great wealth of Early Christian literature on natural history incorporated into sermons and commentaries, and to show the connections between this exegetical literature and presentations of nature in art. By studying the parallels between art and literature it is possible to reveal the common patterns of thinking that may have inspired both artists (or their patrons) and writers.Most of the works of art discussed in this book are floor mosaics, but also considered are portrayals of life of the earth and the ocean displayed on walls, vaults, and ceilings. The first of seven chapters contains an introductory discussion of the language of symbolism in early Byzantine art, especially with respect to portrayals of themes from nature. Each of the six subsequent chapters is devoted to a different interpretation of terrestrial nature, as seenboth in art and in literature. The second chapter is concerned with those writers and artists who interpreted the world created by God in an absolutely literal sense, reading no kind of symbolism or allegory into it, and the third chapter with those who interpreted most of Creation literally, but allegorized certain parts of it, so that they saw only some elements of natural history as Christian symbols. The next two chapters treat those who were willing to allegorize the world extensively, imposing elaborate superstructures of symbolic meaning onto the whole scheme of Creation. The sixth chapter is concerned with mosaics and commentaries which gave a moralistic purpose to their views of the earth, by portraying humanity's role in nature. Finally, the seventh chapter shows how portrayals of Earth and Ocean could also have had an imperial significance in early Byzantine art, in the decoration of churches as well as of palaces. One of the most distinctive characteristics of Byzantine art of the later fifth and the sixth centuries AD is its fondness for imagery drawn from natural history. Wherever the visitor looks in churches of this period, whether it be to the floors, the walls, the furnishing, or the ceilings and the vaults, there may be representations of birds, beasts, sea creatures, and plants. These motifs from nature raise complex questions of meaning and significance, but often the works of art do not in themselves provide clear answers to these questions, so that the modern viewer is unsure how to interpret them. The aim of this book is to draw on the great wealth of Early Christian literature on natural history incorporated into sermons and commentaries, and to show the connections between this exegetical literature and presentations of nature in art. By studying the parallels between art and literature it is possible to reveal the common patterns of thinking that may have inspired both artists (or their patrons) and writers. Most of the works of art discussed in this book are floor mosaics, but also considered are portrayals of life of the earth and the ocean displayed on walls, vaults, and ceilings. The first of seven chapters contains an introductory discussion of the language of symbolism in early Byzantine art, especially with respect to portrayals of themes from nature. Each of the six subsequent chapters is devoted to a different interpretation of terrestrial nature, as seen both in art and in literature. The second chapter is concerned with those writers and artists who interpreted the world created by God in an absolutely literal sense, reading no kind of symbolism or allegory into it, and the third chapter with those who interpreted most of Creation literally, but allegorized certain parts of it, so that they saw only some elements of natural history as Christian symbols. The next two chapters treat those who were willing to allegorize the world extensively, imposing elaborate superstructures of symbolic meaning onto the whole scheme of Creation. The sixth chapter is concerned with mosaics and commentaries which gave a moralistic purpose to their views of the earth, by portraying humanity's role in nature. Finally, the seventh chapter shows how portrayals of Earth and Ocean could also have had an imperial significance in early Byzantine art, in the decoration of churches as well as of palaces. Cover......Page 1 Contents......Page 6 List of Illustrations......Page 8 Acknowledgments......Page 14 Introduction......Page 16 BYZANTINE REACTIONS TO ANIMALS AND PLANTS IN CHRISTIAN ART......Page 20 THE POLYVALENCE OF IMAGES......Page 23 AMBIVALENCE AND AMBIGUITY......Page 25 POTENTIAL AND INTENDED SYMBOLISM......Page 28 THE TEXTUAL TRADITION......Page 32 THE BATHS AT GAZA AND ANTIOCH......Page 35 THE CHURCH OF DUMETIOS AT NIKOPOLIS......Page 36 THE BASILICA OF THYRSOS AT TEGEA......Page 39 THE CHURCH OF ST. CATHERINE AT MOUNT SINAI......Page 43 THE TEXTUAL TRADITION......Page 46 THE CHURCH AT KHALDE......Page 48 THE CHURCH OF SS. COSMAS AND DAMIAN AT GERASA......Page 49 THE LARGE BASILICA AT HERAKLEA LYNKESTIS......Page 51 THE TEXTUAL TRADITION......Page 56 THE EAST CHURCH AT QASR-EL-LEBIA: THE ICONOGRAPHIC PROBLEM......Page 59 THE MEANING OF KTISIS......Page 63 THE ALLEGORICAL MEANING......Page 65 THE TEXTUAL TRADITION......Page 72 THE BIRD RINCEAU......Page 75 THE TEXTUAL TRADITION......Page 82 THE CHURCHES OF THE PRIEST JOHN AND OF ST. GEORGE AT KHIRBAT AL-MAKHAYYAT......Page 84 THE TEXTUAL TRADITION......Page 88 EARTH AND OCEAN IN THE PALACE......Page 89 THE CHURCH OF S. VITALE AT RAVENNA......Page 91 Conclusion......Page 96 CHAPTER I......Page 100 CHAPTER II......Page 102 CHAPTER III......Page 105 CHAPTER IV......Page 107 CHAPTER V......Page 110 CHAPTER VI......Page 112 CHAPTER VII......Page 113 CONCLUSION......Page 115 Bibliography......Page 116 Index......Page 120 Illustrations......Page 126 Cover 1 Contents 6 List of Illustrations 8 Acknowledgments 14 Introduction 16 I The Language of Symbols 20 BYZANTINE REACTIONS TO ANIMALS AND PLANTS IN CHRISTIAN ART 20 THE POLYVALENCE OF IMAGES 23 AMBIVALENCE AND AMBIGUITY 25 POTENTIAL AND INTENDED SYMBOLISM 28 II The Literal Sense 32 THE TEXTUAL TRADITION 32 THE BATHS AT GAZA AND ANTIOCH 35 THE CHURCH OF DUMETIOS AT NIKOPOLIS 36 THE BASILICA OF THYRSOS AT TEGEA 39 THE CHURCH OF ST. CATHERINE AT MOUNT SINAI 43 III Partial Allegory 46 THE TEXTUAL TRADITION 46 THE CHURCH AT KHALDE 48 THE CHURCH OF SS. COSMAS AND DAMIAN AT GERASA 49 THE LARGE BASILICA AT HERAKLEA LYNKESTIS 51 IV The Gathering of the Waters 56 THE TEXTUAL TRADITION 56 THE EAST CHURCH AT QASR-EL-LEBIA: THE ICONOGRAPHIC PROBLEM 59 THE MEANING OF KTISIS 63 THE ALLEGORICAL MEANING 65 V The Creatures of the Fifth Day 72 THE TEXTUAL TRADITION 72 THE BIRD RINCEAU 75 VI Nature and Humanity 82 THE TEXTUAL TRADITION 82 THE CHURCHES OF THE PRIEST JOHN AND OF ST. GEORGE AT KHIRBAT AL-MAKHAYYAT 84 VII King and Creator 88 THE TEXTUAL TRADITION 88 EARTH AND OCEAN IN THE PALACE 89 THE CHURCH OF S. VITALE AT RAVENNA 91 Conclusion 96 Notes 100 INTRODUCTION 100 CHAPTER I 100 CHAPTER II 102 CHAPTER III 105 CHAPTER IV 107 CHAPTER V 110 CHAPTER VI 112 CHAPTER VII 113 CONCLUSION 115 Bibliography 116 Index 120 Illustrations 126 0271004770,9780271004778 This volume of the College Art Association Monograph series examines how the Earth and oceans were represented in early Byzantine art. Henry Maguire. Includes Index. Bibliography: P. 101-103.