Byzantine Church Research Articles

Discovery of a Byzantine Church in Iznik/Nicaea, Turkey: an Educational Case History of Geophysical Prospecting with Combined Methods in Urban Areas

AbstractThe city of Iznik, called Nikaia or Nicaea in ancient times, is located in northwest Anatolia, Turkey. Nicaea is renowned especially for the first Council of Nicaea convened by the Roman emperor Constantine in ad 325 in an attempt to unify the Church. During an international field course on the geophysical exploration of archaeological targets we detected the remains of a small previously unknown Byzantine church on a fallow lot of land inside the city. The church is oriented parallel to the ancient Hippodamian street grid that deviates from the modern street system of the quarter by ~45°. We found the contours of the nave, two aisles and three apses as well as evidence of a partly refilled grave. The geophysical measurements indicate that the foundations of the church consist of low‐porosity hard rock with a low magnetic susceptibility, probably limestone or sandstone embedded in fluvial sediments. The field study is based on ground‐penetrating radar (GPR), magnetics, electric resistivity tomography (ERT) and microgravimetry. It highlights the strength and necessity of combining different geophysical methods in exploring and characterizing archaeological sites. In fact, the foundation walls of the church do not show any magnetic anomaly but could be delineated clearly only by GPR. The wall remains appear as highly resistive spots in ERT. By converting the three‐dimensional GPR image into an electric resistivity model we could verify that the ERT results fully correspond to the ruins found by GPR. The structure interpreted as a loosely refilled grave is indicated mainly by a weak gravity anomaly (~9 μGal) and a diffuse reflection pattern in GPR. Electric forward modelling shows that this structure leads to an additional increase of a high resistivity anomaly, which is primarily caused by foundation rocks, but it cannot be resolved within the ERT pattern a priori. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

A Comparative Study of Pigments from the Wall Paintings of Two Greek Byzantine Churches

The goal of this study was to characterize pigments used in the murals of two Byzantine churches, from Kastoria, northern Greece. The identification of the iconographer was also investigated by comparing the pigments applied in the wall paintings of the churches. Pigment microsamples of various colors were collected and analyzed by environmental scanning electron microscopy coupled with an energy dispersive system to characterize the elemental composition. Raman spectroscopy was employed to collect molecular spectra for characterization of mineralogical phases. Hematite, cinnabar, and minium were identified in red surfaces. Brown and yellow colors were assigned to mixtures of iron oxides, iron hydroxides, and calcite. Mixtures of iron, lead, and mercury compounds were used to produce different hues in the murals. Black tones were prepared primarily using charcoal and bone black. Grey colors were produced by a mixture of black carbon with calcite; blue hues, by a mixture of iron oxides, calcite, and black carbon. The minerals used were similar for both churches. However, the green color was prepared either by green earth or mixtures of iron oxides and calcite. A modern pigment, lithopone, was also determined, demonstrating restoration or overpainting and thus complicating possible correlations. Based on these preliminary results, the wall paintings could not be ascribed to a specific iconographer.

The Byzantine Legacy of Religious and Legal Pluralism: A Contemporary Reassessment of Byzantine Church-State Relations

In modern times, many Christians have struggled with the question of how their faith commitments can inform a meaningful social and political engagement within the contemporary secular realities that surround them. This article critically explores one especially commanding narrative that has often complicated such efforts for Orthodox Christians in particular, namely the Byzantine legacy of church–state relations. The article proceeds to make the case in favour of a more nuanced and layered account of church–state relations in the Eastern Roman Empire. First, the exact value of Justinian’s Sixth Novel in reflecting the celebrated symphony in Byzantine church–state relations is evaluated not only on the basis of the Novel itself, but also with respect to the recognized role played by legal pluralism in Byzantine society. Second, the Edict of Milan (313) is highlighted as having inaugurated a period of religious pluralism which only terminated with Theodosius’s promulgation of Christianity as a state religion in 380, some 43 years after the death of Constantine. Third, the early monastic and hierarchical resistance to the increasing imperialization of Christianity is expounded as further support for the conceptualization of alternative facets in the Byzantine legacy of church–state relations.

The Byzantine Church of Khirbet et-Tireh

ABSTRACT Khirbet et-Tireh was inhabited from the Hellenistic to Early Islamic periods and was later used for agriculture through the Ottoman period to modern times. It suffered severe damage due to urban development and looting over the past two centuries, resulting in the irretrievable loss of at least three-quarters of its archaeological remains. The surviving ruins include a Byzantine-era church, villa, and monastery, fortifications, a rock-cut reservoir, burial caves, a rock-cut olive press, a wine press, and several dry-stone terrace walls. The following article describes the site's current state, the efforts to uncover and preserve what remains, and an assessment of the recent destruction, particularly on the church, which is the focus here.

World heritage and the contradictions of ‘universal value’

This article critically appraises the notion of ‘universal value’ as a core principle underpinning World Heritage Sites. It does so through examination of Göreme Open-Air Museum, a cultural tourism site of cave Byzantine churches in central Turkey. Focusing on the contestation surrounding the frescoes within the Byzantine churches, the article discusses tensions relating to the non-iconographic nature of Islam and to the ways that deliberate damage to the frescos is interpreted to tourists. We conclude that these tensions emphasise the singularity of the concept of universal value, and argue that it is only by embracing pluralism and being open to alternative narratives and debate that World Heritage Sites, as international tourism sites, might be able to achieve UNESCO’s unifying ideals.

The Beginnings of Slavic Literacy and Cultural Awareness as Revealed on Manuscripts and Printed Materials in 16th c

The Beginnings of Slavic Literacy and Cultural Awareness as Revealed on Manuscripts and Printed Materials in the Period from 9th to the First Half of 16th CenturyExtended abstractOn the basis of manuscripts and printed sources the paper deals with the period between 9th and 16th century which could be determined as a period of an intensive formation and development of Slavic literacy. The theoretical framework gives a brief presentation of the activity of the saints Constantine and Methodius, who systematically introduced a new liturgical language in Pannonia and Great Moravia in 9th century thus establishing a new Christian language as the fourth of the world's languages. The paper highlights the liturgical conception of Cyrillo-Methodian activity which was not very different from the long-established practice in the Byzantine Church, with special emphasis on the liturgical conception of the first holy texts translated into the Slavic liturgical language. Furthermore, the paper gives a brief overview of the Slavic and Byzantine manuscript writing. As the geographical-historical territory dealt with includes the territory of the present Slovenia, some attention is given to the question of the existence of the Old Church Slavic language even before the Cyrillo-Methodian mission, too. Parallels between Brižinski spomeniki and the beginnings of the Old Church Slavic literacy are presented with connection to the Jernej Kopitar’s research and contribution to the development of scientific Slavic studies in the first half of 19th century. A typological overview of some Old Church Slavic documents (Glagolitic and Cyrillic) is given not focusing only on linguistic characteristics but trying to present the artistic design and other special features related to the historico-political circumstances of an individual codex. In addition, the theoretical background is underlined by the results of researching Slavic manuscripts in situ. Studying some manuscripts held in European institutions (libraries, archives and museums in Athens, Venice, Florence, Ljubljana, Moscow, Palermo, Paris, Rome, Sankt Petersburg and Siena) the possibility of different approach to the evaluation of Old Church Slavic monuments arises, suggesting the potential influence of the western world (in the early period) and their historico-cultural role. The above mentioned facts are demonstrated on Slavic manuscripts in the Kopitar's collection held by the National and University Library in Ljubljana. The content of liturgical manuscripts, together with theological problems was directly transformed into printed documents in the Renaissance period. That is why in the final part of the paper, the attention is paid to individual Cyrillic prints from the first half of the 16th century. They are a part of the Manuscript, rare and old prints collection held by the National and University Library as a part of Kopitar's legacy whose linguistic studies underlined the above mentioned nucleus of the beginning of Slavic literacy characterized by the above mentioned features. Kopitar's collection of Slavic manuscripts and prints serves as a ground to research the beginnings and development of Slavic literacy between 9th and 16th century.

Strategy for Integrated Surveying Techniques Finalized to Interpretive Models in a Byzantine Church, Mesopotam, Albania

The research is part of a larger project, within an international cooperation, supported by UNESCO, for the study, restoration, and revitalization of Byzantine and Ottoman monuments in Southern Albania. The project was carried out on the Saint Nicholas monastic complex located in the Mesopotam area (Albania) by a multidisciplinary group of researchers from different Italian universities. Using integrated surveying technologies, the diagnostic investigation focused on enhancing our knowledge of structural behavior as a qualifying element for future conservation and maintenance programs. The aim was to develop interpretive models able to connect thematic and geometric information to the history of the monument by reading and recognizing the constructive technologies that were employed. Hence, the term “surveying techniques” includes geometrical surveys by laser scanner and photogrammetry, stratigraphic analysis, crack pattern surveys, and crack monitoring. The study was carried out on the Church of Saint Nicholas in order to collect data on the morphological and structural problems of the building. The results show that the damage of the structure started long ago and was probably caused by earthquakes. Moreover, the continuous, slow, long-term outward movement of the facades and of the apse should be controlled by an appropriate design for strengthening and repair. At the same time, the methodology highlighted the need for investigating the different structural technologies and skills before planning interventions. With such a common geospatial semantic matrix, progressively developing toward a historical building information four-dimensional (4D)model, further surveys—using techniques ranging from the micro-UAV campaign to multispectral analysis—can be better oriented in the future.

Entertainment in the twelfth-century canonical commentaries: were standards the same for Byzantine clerics and laymen?

In this article I analyse the twelfth-century commentaries of Aristenos, Zonaras, and Balsamon on canons that prohibited certain forms of entertainment to clerics and/or laymen. Only when their commentaries are studied as a whole, does a pattern in their treatment become clear: they sought to minimize any distinctions between laity and clergy found in the original canons. This gives us a rare glimpse into lay and clerical interactions and reinforces the view that the Byzantine Church did not wish to maintain clear boundaries between clerics and laymen.

Üçayak: a forgotten Byzantine church

AbstractThe imposing ruins of a Byzantine church known as Üçayak, situated in the vicinity of the city of Kırşehir in central Anatolia, on the border between the historic Byzantine provinces of Galatia and Cappadocia, exhibit several conspicuous architectural features. The church presents a combination of an ambiguous twin-church plan, a distinctive building technique, and a remarkably sophisticated exterior design comparable with those of metropolitan buildings. Together these features leave doubts about the sources of the church’s design, its original function and its patronage. In order to ponder the relationship between Üçayak‘s architecture and metropolitan and regional architectural developments, this paper deals with the church’s design and structural type within the framework of the totality of eleventh-century building activities, and examines possible function of the twin-church by comparing it with other regional Byzantine-rite churches. This study brings to the fore the extraordinary place of this church within the context of the regional construction, and establishes its close ties with eleventh-century metropolitan architecture. It also reveals the engagement of a master builder closely familiar with metropolitan practice and suggests that the building activities in the region of Bithynia may have facilitated the transmission of metropolitan architectural concepts further inland. In all probability, Üçayak‘s patron was a member of the local elite, which was customarily connected to the capital. Regarding the possible function of the twin-church of Üçayak, this article argues for the burial and commemorative functions, which often motivated the double arrangement in Cappadocian rock-cut churches.

The state of research on church chant in medieval Serbia

The Byzantine-musicological studies in Serbia during the last few decades have been at an unsatisfactory level. The fact that Serbian musicologists have not exhibited much interest in exploring this research area could be somewhat justified by the fact that its scope for new studies might seem limited. The efforts aimed towards reconstructing and ?resounding? the medieval liturgical melodies based on the anagogic sources (the primary sources - notated manuscripts are very deficient) seems, at first glance, discouraging, even futile. Nevertheless, the conditions for systematic research do exist, all the more because the current knowledge on music paleography, rhythmic and scale characteristics of Byzantine church chant has considerably changed the previous inquiry that had been limited to a few, although very precious musical pieces of only three known Serbian fifteenth-century composers - Ishaia, Nikola and Stefan. After a brief account on the topics and issues that have, until now, been in the scholarlyfocus, I draw attention to what has been done and what is currently underway in the research on Serbian medieval chant, while also indicating the areas that could be of greater interest for future explorations. I pay special critical attention to certain conclusions and methodological methods applied to the notated manuscripts that deal with liturgical music practice in medieval Serbia. According to some new findings in the field of Byzantine musicology, a new critical reading of available sources is necessary. Becoming acquainted with the earlier false approaches and conclusions made in haste and without particular evidence could be of significant help and serve as an important impulse for young researchers to get involved with explorations of Serbian music past.

Églises en dialogue: Arméniens et Byzantins dans la seconde moitié du XII e siècle by Isabelle Augé (review)

Eglises en dialogue: Armeniens et Byzantins dans la seconde moitie du XIIe siecle. By Isabelle Auge. [Corpus Scriptorum Christianorum Orientalium, Vol. 633; Corpus Scriptorum Christianorum Orientalium, Subsidia. Tomus 124.] (Leuven: Peeters. 2011. Pp. xxx, 317. euro75,00 paperback. ISBN 978-90-429-2357-7.)This publication is a revised version of Isabelle Auge's dissertation, Les discussions religieuses armeno-grecques au temps des catholicos Pahlawouni, presented in 2008 at the Universite Paul Valery-Montpellier III and directed by Gerard Dedeyan. The volume constitutes a thorough study of nineteen letters in Armenian pertaining to the dialogue on reconciliation between the Armenian and Byzantine Churches, initiated in 1165 by Nerses IV Klayec'i (nicknamed Snorhali, the Gracious) during the Catholicosate of his elder brother Grigor III (in office 1113-66), whom he succeeded as Catholicos (in office 1166-73). The sustained efforts for reconciliation continued under Nerses's successor, his nephew Grigor IV Tlay (the Youth, in office 1173-93) and grandnephew Nerses of Lambron (Archbishop of Tarsus, 1175-98). Eleven of these letters were to/from the Emperor Manuel I Komnenos (reigned 1143-80) and four to/from Michael III of Anchialus, patriarch of Constantinople (in office 1170-77). The preface by Jean-Pierre Mahe sets the larger historical context of the correspondence (pp. v-viii).The study is divided into two major parts. The first part delineates the historical, dogmatic, and liturgical divide between the two churches that necessitated Snorhali's initiative (pp. 1-90). The second part consists of a finely annotated translation of the letters (pp. 91-243). The first ten letters are those of Snorhali to the Byzantine authorities and their responses; the eleventh is his letter to the bishops and theologians of the Armenian Church. The remaining eight letters pertain to his successor, Grigor IV. Letters no. 12 to no. 17 are written to or are from the Byzantine authorities, letter no. 18 is from the Armenian bishops and theologians to Grigor IV, and letter no. 19 is his response to them. For all but one of these letters, Auge follows the text of the 1871 Jerusalem edition of Snorhali's Encyclicals. For the exceptional fifteenth letter, from Grigor IV to Manuel I, she follows the text published by Arsak Ter Mik'elean {Ararat, 26 [1893], 25-48).The volume has three lengthy appendices (pp. 245-303), composed of an annotated translation of Nerses of Lambron's assessment of the issues at stake, the demands and counter-demands made by both sides {cf. the table provided on p. 78); his 1197 dialogue with George II Xiphilinus, patriarch of Constantinople (in office 1191-98); and a well-outlined biography of Snorhali. …

Seismic retrofitting of Fragavilla Monastery

Practical seismic assessment and design of retrofit for the multitude of small ecclesiastical monuments that abound in the Balkans is the subject of this work. Application of the proposed procedures and methodologies are illustrated in an example case study, a small byzantine church located in Western Greece, which is the region with the highest seismicity in Europe. The church, known as the Fragavilla Monastery, had remained almost undamaged for 800 years, until 1993 when the Pyrgos earthquake caused critical damage mainly in the vaults. Linear elastic analysis to the recorded ground motion, capped by a biaxial failure criterion reproduced the developed damage. The same modelling and analysis procedure was subsequently used for assessment of the intended retrofitting measures. Proposed retrofitting measures included mitigation of the undesirable implications of past interventions along with a combination of strengthening schemes with externally bonded AFRPs strategically placed in the structure. The effectiveness of the proposed solutions is gauged by successful reduction of stress intensity in the critical regions and mitigation of stress localization throughout the structure.

Between Hellenism and Arabicization. On the formation of an ethnolinguistic identity of the Melkite communities in the heart of Muslim rule

The present paper deals with the Melkite community as a specific group with an ecclesiastical identity which arose in the Islamic period, in the heartland of Islam, and therefore not in Constantinople. Our aim is to describe those features of this community that arose from the Byzantine Orthodox faith, although formed from anti-Monothelite Syrian Chalcedonian groups, as distinct from the Jacobites, later identified with the Christians of the Umayyad Caliphate who accepted the teachings of the Sixth Ecumenical Council of the Royal Byzantine Church in 681. In this context the label Melkite should not be understood as a synonym of «Greek Orthodox» but rather of «Chalcedonian», which, for the Syrian Christians, identifies those who followed the Dyothelite dogma.

Early Byzantine churches in Crete and Cyprus, between local identity and homologation

Les recherches sur les églises paléochrétiennes de Crète et de Chypre ont mis en évidence à la fois des traits communs et des différences qui tiennent aux traditions locales et à diverses influences typologiques et liturgiques. Une comparaison effective entre les deux îles n’est possible qu’au niveau des grands complexes ecclésiastiques : pour la Crète, cette évaluation concerne seulement la métropole (Gortyne) et, plus précisément, sa cathédrale, dont les aménagements sont caractéristiques d’une architecture internationale de «haut rang » .

Święci Cyryl i Metody w świetle filiokwistycznej idei Karola Wielkiego

During twelve years St. Methodius build up Slavonic Church in Central Europe. His position was a singulary difficult one. He had to contend with problems caused by Franks. The Frankish clergy did everything possible to undermine his authority: their resentment of his archiepiscopal powers and their dogged opposition to the Slavonic liturgy now combined with a theological grievance, which they loudly voiced both in Moravia and in Rome. The Frankish Church now firmly committed to the doctrine of the filioque. It had already arisen in 867, when patriarch Photius denounced the Franks for spreading filioque in Bulgaria. Now in Moravia, between 879 and 885, filioque flared up afresh, embittering the last years of Methodius’ life. The Church of Rome, though it did not formally accept filioque until the early eleventh century, had already begun to adopt it unofficially. The Byzantine Church strongly objected to the filioque, partly on the grounds that any alternation to the Creed had been expressly forbidden by the ecumenical councils, and partly because it believed to be theologically erroneous. Methodius, who, despite his position as papal legate, remained a Byzantine in outlook, could not fail to regard this doctrine, accepted by Frankish subordinate clergy as heretical. The filioque was to become the basic theological issue in the medieval controversies between the Byzantine and Roman Churches.

Hierarchies or direct relation to god: A new interpretation

In this paper it will be questioned that the hierarchies play an important role in Byzantine church decoration. There are only a few examples which probably could be interpretated as depictions of hierarchies. But even they are far from certain. Depictions of hierarchies came up during the first centuries of the Post-Byzantine times and occured quite often from then on. It is proposed that these Post-Byzantine examples derive from Western models. In general it remains to clarify whether or not Byzantine theology is dominated by hierarchical theories. It contradicts the idea of theosis to which e.g. the Pantocrator probably fits better than anything else.

St. Symeon the New Theologian and Western Dissident Movements

The trial at Orleans in 1022 of a group of aristocratic clergy, who included the confessor of Queen Constance of France, and their followers on the charge of heresy is the most fully reported among the group of heresy trials which were conducted in the Western Church during the first half of the eleventh century. Although the alleged heretics of Orleans are usually considered a part of a wider pattern of Western religious dissent, the charges brought against them differ considerably from those levelled against the other groups brought to trial in that period. The heterodox beliefs with which the canons of Orleans were charged bear a strong resemblance to the teachings of the Byzantine abbot, St. Symeon the New Theologian, who died in 1022. St. Symeon taught that it was possible for a Christian to experience the vision of God in this life if he or she received ascetic guidance from a spiritual director, who need not be a priest. In the late tenth and early eleventh centuries a significant number of Orthodox monks visited northern Europe, including Orleans, and some of them settled there. It is therefore possible that the Canons of Orleans who were put on trial had been trained in the tradition of St. Symeon by one of those Orthodox monks who were familiar with it. St. Symeon was part of the Hesychast tradition in the Byzantine Church. Even so, his emphasis on the supremacy of personal religious experience at the expense of the corporate worship of the institutional Church was strongly criticised by some of his contemporaries. A study of his writings shows that he was, in fact, completely Orthodox in faith and practice and that these criticisms were ill-judged. Nevertheless, if, as we have suggested, the Canons of Orleans had tried to live in accordance with his teachings, the hostile reactions of the Western hierarchy would be comprehensible. For there was no tradition of Hesychasm in the spirituality of the Western Church, and the fact that the dissidents at Orleans saw little value in observing the rituals of the established Church would have alarmed conventional churchmen.

The Church of Divine Wisdom or of Christ – the Incarnate "Logos"? Dedication of "Hagia Sophia" in Constantinople in the Light of Byzantine Sources from 5th to 14th Century

The article attempts to answer the question of how the name of the most important Byzantine church of Constantinople, the basilica of Hagia Sophia, built in the mid-4th cent., and then rebuilt during the reign of Justinian the Great was understood and interpreted. The problem has been presented on the basis of the views of Byzantine writers from the 5th to the 14th cent. (Socrates Scholasticus, Procopius of Caesarea, Paul the Silentiary, John Zonaras, George Pachymeres, Patriarch Callistus I). The analysis of the above sources allows an assumption that according to the Byzantines themselves the Constantinopolitan cathedral was dedicated to the Divine Wisdom, commonly identified with Christ, the Incarnate Word. The evidence supporting this thesis has been provided by both iconography (e.g. the mosaic from the turn of the 9th and 10th cent. from the tympanum over the main entrance from the narthex to nave of Hagia Sophia, depicting Christ the Pantocrator) and the liturgical practice of the basilica, which can now be reconstructed on the basis of the temple typicons, preserved until today. The final part of the article names some other churches dedicated to the Divine Wisdom, built in the area of the Byzantine ecumene (Ephesus, Jerusalem, Thessalonica, Nicaea, Edessa, Trebizond, Mistra, Arta, Benevento, Nicosia on Cyprus, Serdica (Sofia), Ohrid, Sliven, Kiev, Novgorod the Great and Polotsk).

The Byzantine Church – a Space for the Catechesis

The Byzantine Church – a Space for the Catechesis

Hospital Building That Merges Science and Art: Alvar Aalto†

Architecture is one of the fine arts—despite its high technical content. It belongs with painting and sculpture. Historically—from ancient Greece through Rome, the Middle Ages, and the Renaissance—painting and sculpture were closely associated with buildings. Sculptures and mosaics decorated buildings themselves—as, for instance, the Parthenon in Athens or the Byzantine churches—or they complemented them, like the altars in medieval cathedrals. Later, in the 16th and 17th centuries, the illusionistic frescoes, such as those by the Bolognese artist Annibale Carracci (1560–1609), created virtual open spaces in the interiors of palaces and churches. Such associations of painting with architecture can also be seen much later, as in Matisse's Chapel of the Rosary in Vence (Chapelle du Rosaire de Vence) in Provence or in the nondenominational Rothko Chapel in Houston, Texas. Lastly, contemporary public art is part of urban spaces. Architecture relates also to health, of course. In fact, some architects probably see healthcare as part of culture more clearly than many other professional groups (1). Initially, hospitals were buildings designed for the care of the needy rather than as specific places for the ill. The Shorter Oxford English …