World Heritage and "History of Western Architecture" ③ | Byzantine Architecture

Hello.
This time, I will explain Byzantine architecture!
From this era, the influence of Christianity begins to be seen strongly.
Let's witness its dawn!!!

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Trends of the Eastern Roman Empire

In 330, Constantinople became the capital of the Eastern Roman Empire (later the Byzantine Empire: 395–1453), and it began to form a culture distinct from Rome.

In Anatolia (present-day Turkey),Roman architectural techniques combined with Eastern culture to develop,and Byzantine architecture developed centered on church buildings, with brick construction flourishing.

It should also be noted that it is characterized by the fusion of dome ceilings with basilica-style, centralized, and cross-in-square church architectures, as well as magnificent interiors, which also influenced Islamic architecture.

Byzantium in Istanbul

At the Hagia Sophia, part of the World Heritage site "Historic Areas of Istanbul," a massive dome was placed in the center, with semi-domes in front and behind, and smaller domes surrounding them, achieving a fusion of the basilica and centralized styles.

And this method became a unique technique of Byzantine architecture.
The Christianity of the Eastern Roman Empire, even after the collapse of the empire, had its lineage inherited and spread widely through the Greek Orthodox Church, the Russian Orthodox Church, and others.

Byzantium seen in other regions

Moving on to Italy, in"Early Christian Monuments of Ravenna,"many early Christian artistic achievements from the era of Emperor Justinian remain, and you can see the elegance of mosaic decorations made of colored marble and colored glass.

The "Gelati Monastery" in Georgia retains a Byzantine-style cathedral that was a center of theology; when it was registered as a World Heritage site in 1994, it was listed as "Bagrati Cathedral and Gelati Monastery," butbecause the reconstruction work carried out at the cathedral compromised its authenticity, the component site was removed, and the registration was changed to "Gelati Monastery" alone,which was a significant accident for a World Heritage site.

As a result, policies that place greater emphasis on authenticity have been sought in subsequent World Heritage registrations.

Next time, it will finally be the era when Christian-centered architectural styles take hegemony.
Look forward to the Romanesque architecture edition!!!
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