4. Early Christian Architecture

5. Christianity entered a Rome undergoing dramatic transition. At the same time that the Romans were conquering the Mediterranean world, cultural and religious change was sweeping across the region. The result was, to paraphrase the Roman poet Horace, a conquest that conquered the conquerors. When their traditional virtues which for centuries had been rooted in patriotism began to crumple as a succession of Caesars seized control of the state, the Romans along with many of those around them turned for solace to mysticism, philosophy and exotic religions. Three faiths, in particular, rose to prominence: the cult of the earth-mother Cybele, the worship of the Egyptian goddess Isis and, hardest of all to fathom, the mysteries of Mithras which were entrusted to a secret fraternal order. Through careful research and the study of ancient astrology, scholars have shed important, new light on the riddle of Mithraism and its rites. All this illuminates not only the reasons Christianity ultimately succeeded but also those aspects of the religion which were particularly attractive to the denizens of imperial Rome. www.usu.edu/.../chapters/12CULTS.htm

6. According to another legend, Cybele coupled with a mortal king, named Gordius, the Phrygian king of Gordium, and became the mother of Midas, the founder of Ancyra and the famous king with the golden touch. According to Ovid, it was Cybele who transformed the heroine Atalanta and her husband Hippomenes or Melanion into lions, because Aphrodite had caused the newly wedded couple to defile her temple. Cybele harnessed the lions to her golden chariot. Cybele

7. Isis was especially popular among Greek sailors who by Roman times had spread her worship around the Mediterranean. In this Hellenized form, she had evolved into a universal symbol of renewed life and fertility, and like Cybele, she was important to somebody nearly everywhere. Thus, with no clear image or guiding principle and worshipped in secret rites called mysteries, Isis had come to be everywhere and nowhere at once, both universal and hidden. But like many of her religious rivals, Isis also promised her worshipers immortality after death and personal communion with the goddess. This commonality signals something greater; a need within the Roman populace to feel independent and free-thinking, to make a choice of one's own, to matter as an individual—the growth and success of imperial Rome surely left many with the sense they were just cogs in the machinery of Roman society. This flagging sense of personal worth was a factor every cult had to deal with one way or another, including Christianity. Cult of Isis

8. Mithraism It was not based on a supernaturally revealed body of scripture, and hence very little written documentary evidence survives. Soldiers appeared to be the most plentiful followers of Mithraism, and women were apparently not allowed to join. Mithraea were dark and windowless, even if they were not actually in a subterranean space or in a natural cave. When possible, the mithraeum was constructed within or below an existing building. A communal meal was a part of the ritual. Many mithraea that follow this basic plan are scattered over much of the Empire's former area, particularly where the legions were stationed along the frontiers. Others may be recognized by their characteristic layout, even though converted as crypts beneath Christian churches.

9. Catacombs - an underground cemetery, much used by Early Christians, consisting of passages with niches for burial and small chambers for services.

10. Three Hebrews in the fiery Furnace, Catacomb of Priscilla, late 3rd century CE

11. Interior, House-synagogue, Dura-Europos, Syria, 244-45 CE

12. Distruction of the Temple and Story of Moses, detail of wall paintings, tempera on plaster, House Synagogue, Dura- Europos, Syria, 244-45.

13. Good Shepherd Sarcophagus, from the Catacomb of Praetextatus, Rome, late 4th century CE, marble

14. San Clemente Rome, Italy

15. Basilica: Early History Origins Early congregational worship Roman Apartment House c. 68-96 AD Computer generated model of a Roman house showing the atrium and Tablinum. The Tablinum most likely would have been used as the altar with the atrium functioning as seating for the congregation. Here, the early liturgy would have involved Baptism and the Eucharist. Roman Apartment House (Insula used for Christian worship in Rome c. 68 AD. Built on the remains of a house burned in the fire of 64 AD. The shaded area indicates the location of the Triclinium or dining room, used for the Cena or evening meal. The assumption is that this would have been the location of the Eucharist. It is known that Domatilla, sister of the Emperor Domitian was a member of this congregation. It is possible that Paul the Apostle visited this house, or at least knew members of this congregation, though the date of his death is uncertain, and it is known that this house was constructed after the fire of 64 AD. Peristyle Courtyard Red Lines: remains of building used by Christian congregation Dashed black lines: conjectural reconstruction of apartment building c. 68 AD. Atrium

16. Basilica: Early History Origins Early congregational worship Roman Apartment House c. 68-96 AD Computer generated model of a Roman house showing the atrium and Tablinum. The Tablinum most likely would have been used as the altar with the atrium functioning as seating for the congregation. Here, the early liturgy would have involved Baptism and the Eucharist. Domus of Titus Flavius Clemens used for Christian worship in Rome c. 68 AD. Built on the remains of a house burned in the fire of 64 AD. Adjoining on the right: fragment of a Roman apartment building. The shaded area indicates the location of the Triclinium or dining room, used for the Cena or evening meal. The assumption is that this would have been the location of the Eucharist. It is known that Domatilla, sister of the Emperor Domitian was a member of this congregation. It is possible that Paul the Apostle visited this house, or at least knew members of this congregation, though the date of his death is uncertain, and may have occurred prior to the construction of this house, datable to the years immediately following the fire of 64 AD. Peristyle Courtyard Red Lines: remains of building used by Christian congregation Dashed black lines: conjectural reconstruction of apartment building c. 68 AD. Atrium Blue lines: remains of Mithraic temple 2 nd century AD

17. Basilica: Early History Origins San Clemente, 6 th c. CE Roman Apartment House c. 68-96 AD With 6 th AD century basilica superimposed above. Computer generated model of a Roman house showing the atrium and Tablinum. The Tablinum most likely would have been used as the altar with the atrium functioning as seating for the congregation. Here, the early liturgy would have involved Baptism and the Eucharist.

18. Basilica: Early History Origins San Clemente, 2 th c. CE Mithraic Temple, 1 st or 2 nd c. CE This “three-layered” church, dating to the last decades of the first century A.D., at the dawn of Christianity and during the persecution of Nero evolved from a house, adjoining a Mithraic Temple. Located near the Colosseum in the very heart of Imperial Rome, was the city mansion of Titus Flavius Clemens, Roman Consul and cousin of the Emperor Domitian (81-96 A.D. ) Mithraic Temple Mithraic School

19. Basilica: Early History Origins San Clemente, 1st c. CE Domus of Clemens, 80 CE Clemens' wife Flavia Domitilla was a recent convert and the family transferred its home into a clandestine house of prayer, a secret meeting Place for the Christian Community. This small community boasts a particularly holy personage, Clement, Clemens' freed Jewish slave, who has worked and preached with Sts. Peter and Paul. Later Clemens himself will be martyred and Flavia will carry on the cult as best she can. Later, in the reign of her brother, Domitian, she will be martyred as well. The wall on the left is “Tufa”, a volcanic stone common in Roman construction from the Republican period through the third century CE. The wall on the right is brick, datable to the first century CE. This would have been a gap or an “actus” separating the two buildings. It would have been open to the sky. The distance is 2 ½ Roman feet. The Tufa wall belongs to the Mithraic Temple, the brick wall to the Domus (house) of Clemens. It was in this house that the first c. Christian congregation met. Thus, the “titular” church of San Clemente is so named because it was the “house of Clemens”.

20. Constantine Statue of Roman Emperor Constantine York,England, (r), and Rome, Italy (l) Constantine was made Emperor of Rome,while visiting Eboracum (York),in AD306.

21. Early Christian Architecture Chronology: Edict of Milan 313 AD, announce the toleration of Christianity w/in Roman Empire Founding of Constantinople, 330 AD Western court abandons Rome for Ravenna, 400 AD Barbarians sack Rome in 410 AD and again in 425 AD Fall of the Western Roman Empire and beginning of the Ostragothic Kingdom, 476 AD Reign of Emperor Justinian 527 – 565 AD Life of the Prophet Mohammad, 570 – 632 AD Coronation of Charlemagne, Holy Roman Emperor, Christmas Day 800 AD Great Schism – Final split between eastern and western churches, 1054 AD Fall of Constantinople to the Ottoman Turks 1453 AD, marks the end of the Eastern Roman Empire

22. Arch of Constantine, 312-315 AD

23. Necessitated by the new Christian rituals were places for: 1. Sanctuary or altar 2. Commemoration of relics or saints 3. Clergy (apse and the bema, the area which contains the altar) 4. Congregation (nave and side aisles) 5. Choir and readers from the Old and New Testaments (ambones) 6. Baptism 7. Gathering (Atrium or narthex) 8. Meditation (Cloisters, and later monasteries) Architectural rules also decline in importance – meaning more freedom to create new styles and variations in shape, scale, and manner or use of styles Importance of ecclesiastical architecture grows with new structures following the plans of the ancient Roman basilica and audience halls, adaptng them to the needs of the new religious rituals. Rise of Christianity = Decline of power of Rome

24. 1 2 1: Sultanahmet or Blue Mosque 2: Hagia Sophia 3: Topkapi Palace 4. Hippodrome 3 Istanbul: Seraglio Point 4

25. Istanbul: Remains of Circus Maximus (Hippodrome) from a 16 th century engraving

26. Constantine's Column. (Istanbul) Also known as the “burnt column” The column was pieced together form porphyry shafts taken form other columns and “restored” by Constantine. This stood in the center of the Forum of Constantine. It is all that remains of the Forum. Whatever else there was remains buried at a depth of approximately 4 meters beneath this section of the city

27. Hagia Sophia (Ayosofia) 532-537 AD. The building was begun by Constantine in 337, along with the Church of the Apostles. Its present form dates to the first third of the 6 th century AD during the reign of Justinian.

28. Roman World 6 th century AD Western “Empire” Eastern Empire

29. Britannia, Mauritania, Libya, and the northern coast of the black sea have been abandoned. Visigoths, Burgundians, and Ostrogoths were federated with Rome. Vandals and Huns were hostile. The expansion of the Huns put pressure on the Germanic tribes who moved across the Rhine and settled in what is now western Germany, France, Switzerland, Austria, Belgium, Holland, and England. Within a century, this expansion would cover all of Spain as well Ostrogoths Visigoths Huns Vandals: Rome sacked 410, 426, 476 Rome (WEST) Rome (East) “Byzantine” Burgundians Imperial Period Rome Roman world in 450 AD H U N S V A N D A L S ROME CONSTANTINOPLE

30. Rome 476 AD Imperial Period Rome Ostrogoths Visigoths Vandals Rome (WEST) Rome (East) “Byzantine” Burgundians S L A V S B E R B E R S B A L T S P I C T S S C O T S I R I S H B R I T S A N G L E S S A X O N S A L A N S F I N N S H U N S A R A B S P E R S I A N Franks Alemanni Saxons N O R S E Ostrogothic Kingdom of Odoacer Rome (East) “Byzantine” Rome Frisians O S T R O G O T H S

31. The Basilica Plan : horizontal, longitudinal, processional axis predominant. 1) Nave 2) Side Aisles (containing choir and ambones) 3) Transept 4) Apse (note the Bema is that part of the church which contains the Alter) 5) Narthex 6) Atrium

32. Church of Santa Costanza, Rome, c. 338-50 CE

33. Interior of Church of Santa Costanza, Rome, c. 338-50 CE

34. Harvesting of Grapes, mosaic in the ambulatory vault, Church of Santa Costanza

35. Santa Costanza c. 350 AD Best preserved church from the Constantinian era.

36. Santa Costanza, Rome http://websearch.cs.com/cs/boomframe.jsp?query=Sta+Costanza&page=1&offset=0&result_url=redir%3Fsrc%3Dwebsearch %26requestId%3D3553cf98fb4ef7fb%26clickedItemRank%3D8%26userQuery%3DSta%2BCostanza%26clickedItemURN%3 Dhttp%253A%252F%252Fwww.flickr.com%252Fphotos%252F13934045%2540N00%252F3613988%252F%26invocationTy pe%3D- %26fromPage%3DCSResultsT%26amp%3BampTest%3D1&remove_url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.flickr.com%2Fphotos%2F13 934045%2540N00%2F3613988%2F Mausoleum, converted to a church in 1256. Built by Constantine for his daughter Costanza.

37. 12 pairs coupled Corinthian columns of green and red marble, with arches between them, support the central dome Cupola is 22.5 m in diameter Santa Costanza

38. Mausoleum of Galla Placidia, Ravenna, Italy, c. 425-26 CE

39. Isometric drawing, Mausoleum of Galla Placidia, Ravenna, Italy, c. 425-26 CE

40. Martyrdom of Saint Lawrence, lunette mosaic, Mausoleum of Galla Placidia, Ravenna, Italy, c. 425-26 CE

41. Good Shepherd, lunette mosaic, Mausoleum of Galla Placidia, Ravenna, Italy, c. 425-26 CE

42. Tomb of Galla Placidia Photo by Johnson Architectural Images. © Artifice, Inc., available exclusively through Artifice ImagesArtifice Images

43. Tomb of Galla Placidia c. 425 AD Ravenna, Italy Masonry construction Simple masses with plain exterior of blind arcades Cruciform (central) plan with dome at crossing Extensive mosiacs depict Biblical scenes

44. Galla Placidia, mother of the Emperor

46. The Church of San Vitale, Ravenna, 530-547CE

48. San Vitale 526 – 547 AD Ravenna, Italy The design for the Basilica of San Vitale was the model used by Charlemagne for his Palatine Chapel in Aachen in 805AD.

49. San Vitale interiors

50. Theodora and her retinue, 546-548, mosaic, south wall of the apse, Church of San Vitale, Ravenna, 530-547CE

51. Justinian and his Retinue, 546-548, mosaic, north wall of the apse, Church of San Vitale, Ravenna, 530-547CE

52. Emperor Justinian, Empress Theodora, and Bishop Maximian A good website for more information on this building and the people who built it: http://employees.oneonta.edu/farberas/ARTH/arth212/san_vitale.html

53. The Lamb of God supported by Angels, 546-548, dome apse mosaic, Church of San Vitale, Ravenna, 530-547CE

54. Palatine Chapel at Aachen 805 AD

55. Architectural needs of the Early Christian Church: 1) Place for the sanctuary with altar. 2) Place for commemoration of relics, saints, or holy places. 3) Place for the clergy (apse). 4) Place for the congregation (nave and aisles). 5) Place for singers (choir) and for readers from the Old and New Testaments (ambones, or a raised platform for the speaker). 6) Place for Baptism. 7) Place for gathering (atrium) 8) Place for meditation (cloisters, and later monasteries).

56. Basilicas Most have simple oblong plan with main bay (nave) and side aisles (two or four), and a semicircular apse at the end (facing east) with main entrance on western end. Basilicas can be described as horizontal, longitudinal, processional and predominant. Example: Old Saint Peters c. 330 AD vs. Some centralized plan churches but never gained the importance of the basilicas. Round or octagonal plan in most cases. Central plan churches can be described as vertical, central axis predominant. Used initially for baptisteries, tombs and martyria (sites of holy events) Example: San Vitale in Rome 526- 547 AD Basilica, Trier, Germany, early 4th century, CE

57. Santa Sabina, Rome, 425-440 CE

58. Interior of Santa Sabina, Rome, 425-440 CE

59. Old Saint Peter’s

60. Old Basilica of Saint Peter c. 330 AD Covers an area of 5.7 acres, capacity 60,000 Site of the Circus of Nero, and a later cemetery for pagans and Christians Saint Peter buried here after being crucified on an inverted cross in 64AD Looted in 846 by Arabs who removed all the gold and silver, floors, walls and balustrades Present church begun 1506, completed 1626, built over the (Constantinan) Old Basilica, architects include Michelangelo, Alberti, and Raphael

61. Crucifixion of St. Peter, by Caravaggio

62. The obelisk dates back to the 13th century BC in Egypt, and was moved to Rome in AD37 to stand in the Circus of Nero (820 ft away.) Including the cross on top and its base, the obelisk reaches 40 meters (131 ft). The Vatican obelisk is notable for being the second largest standing obelisk and the only one that remained standing since it was erected during the Roman Empire. An original bronze globe on top of the structure was removed when the obelisk was re- erected in St Peter's Square by Domenico Fontana.

64. S. Apollinare in Classe, 534 – 549 AD Ravenna, Italy

65. Coconino Community College © 1997 Alan Petersen Last Revised: Tue, 21 Jun 2005 16:50:13 GMT http://www.coconino.edu/apetersen/_art201/early_byzantine.htm Interior, St. Apollinaire in Classe

67. San VitaleGalla PlacidiaS. Apollinaire

68. Vocabulary Terms Impost blocks Mosaics Narthex Nave Aisle Bema Exedra Pendentive Catacombs Impost blocks Mosaic