AHIS 120g 1st Edition Lecture 9 Current LectureEarly Christianity- The unified political structure that Rome had created began to break apart by the fourthcentury CE, with the result that separate imperial centers were established for the WesternEmpire and its eastern counterpart—the Byzantine Empire.o Each developed distinct forms of art. - Christianity spread from Palestine, first to Greek-speaking communities, and then reachedthe Latin-speaking world by the end of the second century CE.o By 300 CE, nearly one-third of Rome was Christian, though the new faith had littlestanding until it gained the support of the Emperor Constantine the Great. - Constantine claimed to have seen a sign in the sky in the form of the monogram of Christ,formed by the Chi Rho, the first letters of Christ’s name in Greek, and to have had a dream inwhich Christ himself assured him of his victory over Maxenius, which took place in 312 CE atthe Milvian Bridge. o Constantine promoted Christianity throughout the empire.o He began building important religious structures and placed himself at the head ofthe Church as well as the state. Resulted in the union of Christianity with the legacy of the Roman Empire. - Constantine decided to build a new capital for the Roman Empire at the Greek town ofByzantium, which was renamed Constantinople (present-day Istanbul).o Rome was divided into two halves: an Eastern Empire of which Constantinople wasthe capital, and a Western Empire centered at Rome. Early Christian art- Painted decoration of the Roman catacombs, underground burial places, is the only sizablebody of material we have from which to study the earliest Christian art. o Paintings in the catacombs tell us a good deal about the spirit of the communitiesthat commissioned them.- Santissimi Pietro e Marcellino:o A central medallion or circle contains a figure of the shepherd, who is flanked bysheep and carries a lamb across his shoulders. Christ is generally not represented in the catacombs, except as a metaphor. The shepherd with a sheep on his shoulder is a potent allusion to Christ, sincenumerous biblical accounts refer to him as the Good Shepherd, concerned forthe well-being of his flock and willing to sacrifice himself in order toguarantee the salvation of those who follow him. o The circle is connected to four lunettes (semicircular spaces) and in the four cornersare single figures with outstretched, raised arms—orants.o Style of the painting reflects Roman murals.o However, the representations seem sketchier, less grounded in natural observationthan their Roman relatives. The differences are partly due to the nature of the subterranean spaces, theiruse and their meaning. o Four lunettes around the Good Shepherd form a cycle dedicated to the HebrewProphet Jonah. Prefiguration of Christ. Jonah spent three days within the belly of the whale,just as Christ spent three days inside the tomb.The Christian basilica- The most important Constantinian church structures were a type of basilica, and thisform provided the basic model for the development of church architecture in WesternEurope.- It is characterized by a long nave flanked by side aisles and lit by clerestory windows inthe upper part of the wall.- Combined the spacious interior needed to accommodate a large number of people withimperial associations that proclaimed the privileged status of Christianity. - The Roman-style basilica had to be redesigned to acknowledge these changes. o The longitudinal plan was given a new focus: the altar placed in front of thesemicircular apse at the eastern end of the nave.  Symbolism of the where the sun rises,- Old Saint Peter’s Basilica (Rome, ca. 329)o Greatest Constantinian church. o Built on Vatican Hill next to a pagan burial ground.o It stood directly over the grave of St. Peter, which was marked by a shrinecovered with a baldacchino, a canopy that designates a place of honor. o Served as the apostle’s martyrium, a building that housed sacred relics or theremains of a holy person. o The location of St. Peter’s burial spot was the focus of the church, and due to thesite restrictions, its apse was at the west end of the church, an unusual feature. o To enter the church, the congregation first crossed a colonnaded court, theatrium—derived from the Roman basilica.  Congregants then passed through the narthex, an entrance hall, into thechurch itself. o The shrine stood at the function of the nave and transept, a separate spaceperpendicular to the nave and aisles. o The main focus of the Christian liturgy was the Mass, which includes thesacrament to Communion, the symbolic reenactment on the altar of Jesus’sacrifice. Only those who had proven themselves Christians could witness thecomplete performance of the liturgy.Central-plan structures- Buildings of round or polygonal shape capped by a dome entered the tradition ofChristian architecture in Constantine’s time. o Roman emperors had built similar structures to serve as monumental tombs ormausoleums.- Early Christian central-plan building was often associated with funerary functions, asSanta Constanza, the mausoleum of Constantine’s daughter Constantia. o The focus of the building is on the central space, illuminated by clerestorywindows, over which rises a dome supported by twelve pairs of columns.- A section of a central-plan building parallels a section of a basilican church in that bothhave a high central space with a clerestory flanked by a lower side. Architectural decoration: wall mosaics- The rapid growth of large-scale Christian architecture had a revolutionary effect on EarlyChristian art.- Early Christian wall mosaic replaced the older and cheaper medium of mural painting.o Mosaic produced an extraordinary creative outpouring.o Spread over the nave walls, the triumphal arch, and the apse. - In 5th century churches that we can see the full development of mosaic-decoratedChristian structures. - Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore (ca.432-440)o First church dedicated to Mary, following her declaration as theotokos (Greek for“the bearer of god”) by the Council of Ephesus. o These mosaics include the triumphal arch decoration and more than half of the42 mosaic panels that